


Only You

by StarScheme



Category: Steven Universe (Cartoon)
Genre: Drama, F/M, Oral Sex, Romance, Semi-Public Sex, Sex, Stevinel, Stevnel, Yandere
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-12
Updated: 2021-02-21
Packaged: 2021-02-25 22:14:07
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 24
Words: 53,356
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21762784
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/StarScheme/pseuds/StarScheme
Summary: It’s been a few months since Spinel and Steven made everything official and Steven is planning a big surprise for his Gem Girlfriend on their anniversary. However, when Steven notices a troubling change in Spinel, he goes to the other Gems for help. What they discover will change their futures and threaten to destroy Steven and Spinel’s relationship forever. What should have been a day to celebrate their love becomes a race against the clock. What’s happened to Spinel? Will Steven be able to help her before everything falls apart?
Relationships: Spinel/Steven Universe
Comments: 121
Kudos: 386





	1. A Difficult Start

**Author's Note:**

> This is a Sequel to my first Stevinel Fanfiction, With All My Heart.   
> If you haven't read the first story, things might get a little confusing for you.

The Incident with Sodalite had been over for a couple of months now. Since then, a few things had changed for the Crystal Gems.

After speaking with Connie, the Gems, and his father when he returned, Steven and Spinel had taken one small step forward in their attempt at a normal relationship. However, after Steven had officially asked Spinel to be his girlfriend, nothing had gone right for the two of them. Every time they tried to go on dates or find moments alone, there was always someone spying on them. Pearl seemed so scared to leave them alone, that Steven could barely kiss Spinel before she jumped out of nowhere with some excuse to stop them. So even after becoming a couple, Steven couldn’t help but notice that they hadn’t moved forward much at all.

Even now, Pearl had insisted on taking Spinel with her for some project, leaving Steven alone for the rest of the day. He was spending his time in Little Homeworld, going through the class schedules and meeting up with a few Gems that had complaints or suggestions. Though he had done his best to distract himself, he couldn’t help feeling down. Something that had not gone unnoticed by one of his closer Gem companions.

“You’ve been sighing all day long, have you not been getting the proper amount of sleep that’s needed for humans?” asked Peridot as she came up behind Steven holding a large potted sunflower.

“Not tired,” began Steven, “just frustrated.”

“Ah, of course,” replied Peridot as she nodded her head with confident smile. “It must be because of your last outing with Spinel. From what I saw on the monitors, the problem was—“

“— **That’s** the problem!” insisted Steven in a sudden outburst, nearly causing Peridot to drop her flowerpot. “Someone is **always** watching us! It’s been two months…Spinel and I haven’t been alone in all that time. We had more time together when bad things were happening, but now that things have settled down, I can’t get a private moment with my own girlfriend.”

Clearly this had been building for a while. Peridot cleared her throat lightly, “W-well, as you know my interest in your relationship is purely educational. I think it’s good to know how human/gem couples can get along.”

“It’s not just you though, Pearl is being unreasonable. She isn’t outright disapproving of us, but it’s obvious she’s doing everything she can to keep us apart or make sure we’re not alone. …but I would still like those robonoids to stop following us.”

“Yes, **Pearl** is quite difficult,” Peridot agreed, completely passing by his comment about her robonoids. Surely, Pearl was the biggest problem here. “You two surely can’t make love with Pearl watching.”

“WHA—Peridot—where did---why would you---?!” Steven stammered, his entire face turning red.

“Was that wrong? I’ve been reading up on human relationships. Isn’t that what humans do?” Peridot thought aloud. “Or perhaps it’s not called that with humans and Gems together. What did Greg call it when they made you?”

“J-just stop,” pleaded Steven, placing his hand over his face. “Whatever you’re reading…it’s not going to apply to me and Spinel. Let’s just…how is Sodalite doing in her new home? I heard there was some trouble?” asked Steven in an attempt to change the subject.

“Hm? Oh, well she was happy with her residence at first, but she’s still really anxious around everyone. We’ve been trying to find a class or activity for her, but everything she tries seems to scare her eventually and she makes everything go pitch black. It caused a bit of a collision during construction the other day.”

Steven sighed a little, “It’s probably from spending all those centuries broken. She was forced to feel everyone’s fear and anxiety. Of course there would be some lasting damage. …I’ll go and see if I can talk to her. …Not like I have anything else to do today…” he added under his breath.

With that, Steven and Peridot parted ways and he made his way over to Sodalite’s new home, before he even knocked at the door, Sodalite seemed to already be headed somewhere. When she left her home and saw Steven standing at the door, she flinched and shrunk away. “H-hello. Do you—do you need something My Diamond?” Asked Sodalite meekly, shying away from Steven as if he were going to strike her. She still hadn’t quite understood that Steven was a different person yet.

Steven offered her a smile and put his hands behind his back, hoping it would make her more comfortable. “I just wanted to see how you were doing. I heard some of the activities didn’t go very well…”

“—I didn’t mean to—I just--“

“No one is mad or anything,” added Steven quickly. “I was just wondering if there was anything that would make you feel…safer here? …and remember, my name is Steven, I’m not Pink Diamond.” 

Sodalite shook her head rapidly. “I-I’m sorry, my Diamond, this place is just-AHHH!”

While Sodalite fumbled with her words, Spinel had run up and wrapped her arms around Steven from behind, forcing a scream from the anxious Gem and surprising Steven.

“Did you miss me?” asked Spinel happily, already used to Sodalite’s panicked reactions to just about everything.

Steven was alarmed by the scream more than anything else, glancing over at Sodalite as she took the chance to quickly slink away. It seemed she would need a lot more time to adjust.   
Steven turned his body inside of Spinel’s embrace so that they were facing one another.   
“Of course I missed you,” he replied, taking a moment to scan the area around them. “Did…anyone come with you?”

“If you mean Pearl, I managed to give her the slip. So…she should be panicking pretty severely right about now, but I had to ask Peridot where you were. …so… **she** knows I’m here. Oh…and she said you wanted to talk to me about making something.”

“Do not take relationship advice from Peridot. I know she’s been reading a lot of Camp Pining Hearts Fan Fiction.” Steven instructed Spinel seriously. If anything, it would only confuse Spinel and end up having her show up in a maid’s outfit or something. Now that he thought about it, was that such a bad idea?

“Steven?” began Spinel, a little unsure what prompted his statement about Peridot.

Steven blushed and shook his head, trying to force the image from his mind. This had to be the result of not being able to have any time with his girlfriend. He didn’t enjoy feeling like an out of control teenager, but with everyone watching them so closely, even when he and Spinel were close, he couldn’t touch her.   
“F-Forget it, I just missed you,” he replied, leaning in to kiss her cheek tenderly. “You wanna make a run for it?”

Spinel giggled lightly and nodded her head, “yes, please.”

He could only hope that Peridot wasn’t monitoring them right now. If they made a clean break right now, he and Spinel might actually have a couple of hours to be alone before Pearl went on a rampage to find them. He took Spinel’s hands and leapt into the air with her, heading for the Warp Pad in the middle of town. After today, Steven would have to have another talk with the Gems. He’d hoped they would back off on their own, but two months was too long.

While Steven and Spinel made another attempt to be alone, Sodalite had rushed over to Lars’ bakery, sighing in relief when she saw the sign. Being around him was the only thing that made her feel safe. Perhaps it was the pink color of his skin that reminded her of her Diamond. Or maybe it was the fact that he wasn’t a Gem at all and not quite human either. No matter what it was, she made it a point to visit the bakery as often as she could. When she got inside to find Lars sweeping the floor, she made her way towards him and quietly gripped a bit of his apron between her fingers.

“You’re early today,” Lars commented with an awkward smile. When Sodalite wasn’t freaking out over a loud noise or a shadow, she was terribly shy. He had gotten used to her unique way of announcing her presence by tugging at his sleeve or shirt.

“…that Gem showed up again…” mumbled Sodalite.

Lars knew who Sodalite meant. Even though she was scared of practically everything, Sodalite seemed especially terrified of Spinel for some reason.   
“You know…she’s loud, but she’s actually pretty nice. Maybe if you spent a little time—“

“—NO!” snapped Sodalite, her shoulders trembling. “…you don’t understand. There’s something…different about her. I can feel it. It’s…not the same as the others. It’s…darker.”

Lars was surprised to hear something like that about Spinel. Surely she had some unhinged moments, but he’d never thought of her having a dark personality. Especially since she and Steven began dating. Spinel had been nothing but overjoyed. This had to have been Sodalite’s paranoia. Like when she was sure those birds around her home were planning something. Lars pat Sodalite’s head and sighed, “I’m sure you’re just overthinking things. Why don’t you go to the back and Paddy will get you a cookie.”

Sodalite nodded her head a little and walked to the back. She didn’t really like eating, but she was too anxious to refuse when it was offered to her.

As Sodalite was being force fed cookies by Padparadscha, Steven and Spinel had warped back to the house and snuck off to the only place they could really be alone; his mother’s old room in the temple. They’d promised Pearl that they wouldn’t hide away in there, but after two months of being followed around, neither of them were too concerned about breaking a rule.

Once the door to the room had closed, they both let out a relieved sigh.   
“…This is ridiculous…” Steven muttered. “I can’t believe we have to hide just to spend time together…”

“…I’m sorry,” Spinel started as she tugged at one of her pigtails, “It’s because I keep letting Pearl get away with it. I know I should tell her to stop, but I keep thinking that if I say something…she’ll admit that she doesn’t want me with you.”

“It’s not your fault. I haven’t said anything either. I figured it would just die out after a while, but I’m not willing to wait another month. I mean, in just a couple of weeks, we’ll have been dating for three months and...we haven’t even had one date where someone wasn’t spying on us…”

Spinel sighed, “yes, our first date…was a bit of a mess,” she agreed.

Steven felt a little bad, in their attempt to keep things civil with the rest of the Gems, the first part of their relationship had not been what he wanted at all.   
“…Well, here, close your eyes for a second,” Steven instructed.

Spinel did as she was told and covered her eyes with her hands. She wasn’t quite sure what Steven was going to do, but it didn’t seem to take too long before Steven gently pulled her hands from her eyes. Spinel gasped quietly as she looked over what Steven had done to the room. They were now in a flower covered meadow under the night sky filled with stars. A blanket was placed over the grass so that they could look up at the sky comfortably.

Steven took Spinel’s hand and led her over to the blanket so they could sit together.   
“…Our first date…should have been more like this,” he began, a little embarrassed to meet her eyes right now. It had been so long since they were alone like this, that it felt a little awkward.

“I said before…you don’t have to do anything special for me,” replied Spinel with a blush. “I just like spending time with you…”

Steven shook his head, “You’re my girlfriend,” he insisted. “When we’re together, I want to make things special for you.”

Her cheeks burned a little brighter. Whenever he called her his girlfriend, she couldn’t help but feel embarrassed. “…well…I do like this,” she admitted, “but mostly…I’m just glad we’re alone.”

“Me too,” Steven replied before leaning over and gently kissing her lips. Knowing that Pearl couldn’t come in and interrupt them was a huge relief. It felt like forever since they last kissed and he wasn’t going to waste the opportunity.


	2. Self Control

Perhaps it was because they hadn't been alone in months, but the kiss they shared heated up rather quickly. Spinel was on her back before she realized it, her dress pulled down, stopping just at the swell of her chest. Her gem had a dim glow, shining gently under the night sky Steven had requested for them.

The warm glow of her Gem was a helpful indicator for Steven. It seemed to do this when she was particularly happy. Something that only began after they had shared their feelings for one another. In a way, it made Steven feel this glow was something just for him.

"St-Steven...be careful..." Spinel breathed out in embarrassment as Steven began to move his attention from the soft skin of her chest, over to her Gem.

They were finally alone and Spinel couldn't help but notice that Steven seemed eager to make up for lost time. She could still feel the heat of the marks he had left along her neck as he made his way hungrily down her body with his kiss. The hand that had slid up along her thigh was now resting at her hip, unintentionally hiking up her dress and worrying Spinel that it revealed a little too much.

"Careful?" Repeated Steven softly against her Gem, planting another tender kiss at the surface before he pulled back. "Are you worried I'll hurt you?" He teased with a smile.

"I'm more worried about being eaten," Spinel joked back. Though perhaps not entirely joking since she already felt his teeth graze her skin.

Steven looked down at Spinel in silence for a moment. Her bright magenta eyes, her reddened cheeks, the sweet sound of her voice when she said his name…just that was more than enough for him.

"You're staring again..." Spinel commented as she averted her gaze from his eyes bashfully. He had done the same thing when he first laid her back on blanket.

"Sorry," Steven chuckled as his cheeks flushed lightly. "It’s just…been a while since I’ve seen you like this,” he admitted. Since the moment he kissed her, it was difficult to control his impulses. He was only now looking her over and realizing he may have lost himself a bit. There were marks left on her neck and even some leading down to her chest. At least he had controlled himself well enough to make sure he didn’t pull down her dress too far, though it pained him to stop just at the soft swell of her chest. No matter how much he wanted to continue, he swallowed back his desires and helped Spinel to sit up with him.

Spinel glanced up at Steven curiously as he helped her to fix her dress. “You…look troubled again,” she commented. When they did things like this, she noticed that Steven always seemed to stop when his body temperature rose to a certain degree. “…and you still have…“

Steven saw Spinel glance down at his lap and he cleared his throat, quickly placing his hands over the swell in his pants. “It-it’s fine…” he choked out as his face turned pink.

“Am I doing something wrong,” Spinel asked now. “…I thought it would be better to just go with how it feels…but I can read something…or ask Garnet…”

“What? No! You’re not doing anything wrong,” began Steven, offering a reassuring smile. “Believe me, I…want to keep going,” he admitted with burning cheeks. “It’s just…I want to treasure you properly. I don’t want to rush this just because I can’t control myself. Besides, I’ll be 18 in about a month…and I…I want to make this…special.”

Spinel smiled, Steven was such a romantic. If they had only been allowed more time alone, he wouldn’t feel like he was rushing her like this. Truly, they needed to speak with the others. Mostly Pearl.   
“I love you,” Spinel replied with a cheerful gaze. “We’ll talk to Pearl…and the others and insist this time they give us a little space.”

“A LOT of space,” corrected Steven with a sigh.

With small laugh, Spinel nodded her head. “Either way, could I sleep in your bed tonight? I promise I’ll stand up to Pearl this time.”

“You are always welcome in my bed,” replied Steven, just realizing now that it sounded a bit suggestive. “For now,” he began in attempt to just move past his awkward wording, “let’s enjoy the stars for a little while longer. I’m not ready to go back and deal with everyone else.”

Spinel nodded her head once more and lay back down on the blanket, staring up at sky as Steven laid down beside her. Their shoulders pressed together as they took the others hand, glancing happily at one another before turning their gaze back to the stars above them.

Outside of the temple, Pearl was pacing the floor in the living room while Amethyst watched in annoyance from the couch.

“You’re gonna make a hole in the floor,” sighed Amethyst.

“They promised they wouldn’t go into Rose’s room,” Pearl began frantically, “they promised they wouldn’t go where I couldn’t follow!”

“Yeah, well, you’ve been watching them so closely; I’m surprised you didn’t poke ‘em in the eye with your nose. It’s no wonder they finally snapped. When you jumped out of the bushes on their last date, I thought Steven was going to knock you in the face.”

“…He nearly did…” muttered Pearl as she rubbed the cheek he had grazed with his bubbled fist. “And I didn’t **jump** out, I **tripped** out. It looked like they were about to kiss and I…panicked. I didn’t mean to startle them.” admitted the slender Gem, clearly feeling a tinge of shame over her actions.   
“I-I know I haven’t been handling this well, but-but it’s not just me! **You** shape shifted and replaced the waiter at that restaurant they went to and then you pretended to be that shark when they went to the aquarium.”

“Yeah, but you only know that because you’ve followed them on every single outing, even when it’s not a date. Those times I tagged along, I was just curious and that was only at the beginning. You gotta admit two months of following them around is a little much, Pearl.”

“I know that,” Pearl sighed, “you don’t think I know that?!” Once she finally ceased pacing, Pearl sat herself down on the small steps that led to the warp pad. “I know I’ve been…insufferable. I just can’t seem to stop myself. I have known Spinel since she was created and the same goes for Steven of course. I watched them both change…and now…”

Amethyst could have told Pearl what she was so scared of. It was a little obvious to someone watching from the outside. After watching over Spinel and Steven both, Pearl was panicking that they were moving on without her and leaving her behind. Still, Amethyst knew better than anyone that just because someone tells you what your problem is, doesn’t mean you’re ready to face it or even admit to having one.   
“Pearl, just relax. If you wind any tighter, you’re gonna crack your Gem for sure.”

Pearl glanced back at the Temple door and frowned. She knew this was all her fault. Even waiting out here would only annoy them once they came out to find her here. Still, she couldn’t stop herself from feeling anxious. She wasn’t even sure what she was so afraid of anymore. Those two, they meant more to her than anything and here she was driving them into hiding.

While Pearl was regretting her actions of the past couple of months, the door to the Temple opened up and startled her to her feet. Just as she predicted, when Steven and Spinel stepped out and saw Pearl waiting there, neither of them looked pleased.

“Pearl…did you-“ Steven started irately.

“—N-Not entirely,” Pearl interjected quickly. “Well—well I was, but I-I actually thought that maybe…we should talk.”

“That is a good idea,” Spinel agreed with a hopeful smile. Perhaps they wouldn’t have to upset Pearl too much if she was starting to come around on her own.

“Yes, so why don’t we sit—what’s that?” Pearl was about to lead them towards the couch when she noticed a few abrasions along Spinel’s neck.

With a panicked squeak, Spinel slapped her hand over her skin to cover the marks Steven had left on her. “I don’t even know what a hickey is!” she shouted without thinking, realizing what she said the moment it came out. “Dang it.”

Though Steven was embarrassed, he couldn’t help but laugh at Spinel’s frazzled outburst. He and Amethyst both seemed to find it amusing, while Pearl was frozen in place.   
“Th-this is exactly why you two were told NOT to go into that room alone together!” Pearl insisted, knowing full well this was the wrong thing to say, but the words just spilled out.   
“Neither of you are mature enough to—“

“—that’s enough, Pearl!” Spinel shouted over Pearl.

The other three looked rather surprised that Spinel was the one to argue back first. It was very rare for her raise her voice at Pearl. It had only happened a few times that Amethyst had seen, and certainly not over something as small as this.

“Sp-Spinel, I just don’t think you understand-“ Pearl started again, slightly annoyed that Spinel had snapped at her.

“What I **understand** is that you don’t want me with Steven! I don’t know why you’re so against it!! If he loves me and I love him, why are you so—AGH!” As Spinel finally began to lash out at Pearl, she felt a terrible sting in her chest and crumbled to her knees.

“SPINEL!” Steven and Pearl shouted together.

Steven was already on his knees with Spinel, grabbing her shoulders to quickly take a look at her Gem while Amethyst and Pearl rushed over.   
“P-Pearl…what is this?” Steven asked in a panic as he stared down at Spinel’s Gem.

Once Pearl made it to them, she gasped upon catching sight of her friends Gem. The inverted Heart at Spinel’s chest was losing its pink color and slowly turning black.   
“I-I don’t know!” Pearl nearly sobbed. “Quick, heal her!”

Steven was so shocked that he had almost forgotten about that. He leaned over and kissed her Gem, but nothing changed. “Wha—not again!” Steven groaned.

“I’m not cracked...just…feel dizzy…” Spinel whispered, looking as if she would fall asleep at any moment.

“You’re burning up!” Amethyst exclaimed once she placed her hand on Spinel’s forehead. “Is she—what is this?!”

“You guys go get Garnet and Peridot,” insisted Steven as he scooped Spinel up into his arm, “I’m going to keep trying, but just in case, go get some water from the fountain too!”

“W-We’ll be quick,” Pearl shouted in reply as she and Amethyst stepped onto the warp pad, flashing away almost instantly.

With the others going for help, Steven rushed Spinel to the couch and laid her down, kneeling down beside her so that he could attempt to heal the Gem once again. Why was it, that every time Spinel was in trouble, his power was all but useless? Still, he wasn’t going to stop trying.


	3. The Sleeping Gem

Hours had gone by and even with Garnet, Peridot, his mother’s fountain water, and his healing ability; they had come no closer to helping Spinel. The pigtailed Gem had been moved to Steven’s bed, breathing heavily as her Gems light flickered, seemingly struggling to retain its pink color over the black that threatened to consume it.

“Isn’t there anything more we can do?!” Pearl asked in a hushed panic.

“…I am not sure…” sighed Garnet. “We’ve never seen anything like this.”

Peridot had hooked a few wires to Spinel’s Gem, doing her best to figure out what was going on, but so far had no answers. Garnet had tried looking into the future many times, but because this was something they had never dealt with before, it was impossible to see anything.

“We’ve ruled out corruption and everything else. Her Gem isn’t cracked in the slightest,” Peridot thought aloud. “My scanners can’t find anything. There was a weird blip at first, but I think that’s all it was.”

“She’s still burning up,” added Amethyst. “It’s like…a human fever. …is that even possible?”

“Of course not,” Peridot insisted confidently at first, but that confidence dwindled some as she thought on it, “but then again…Spinel has proven to be a strange Gem from the start. You told me how her Gem changed its position and how her appearance was altered without being able to change back. I’ve certainly never heard of that happening to a Gem before either.”

“So…what, she caught some sort of…human virus? That’s ridiculous. We’ve been here for thousands of years. If she were susceptible to such a thing, it would have happened ages ago.” Pearl sighed miserably. “The last time she went through her change, it didn’t seem to hurt her like this. This time, she’s in pain…and the color of her Gem...it’s changing. What if…”

“Pearl…” Amethyst began, patting her friends shoulder to stop her, glancing at Steven to remind Pearl they weren’t alone.

Steven had been kneeling by Spinel’s bedside the entire time, gripping her hand gently in between both of his own, unable to take his eyes off her, worried that something awful would happen if he looked away. He knew the others were trying to be considerate of him. In all this time, the other Gems had been whispering or choosing their words carefully so as not to worry him any further, but it’s not like he didn’t already know how hopeless this seemed.   
“…she needs more ice…” Steven mumbled. “Can one of you…”

“I got it,” Garnet cut in, stepping to the side of the bed and placing her hand on Spinel’s forehead, her icy touch soothing the Gem a bit.

“So…what should we do now?” Amethyst asked as everyone fell silent. “Just…wait and see?”

“I can go back to Homeworld,” Pearl began, “I’ve never heard of this before, but I’m not that old. Maybe the Diamonds have seen this happen in their lifespan.”

“What good would it do to ask them,” asked Peridot. “If any other Gem went through something like this before Era 3, they wouldn’t have tried to help them; the Diamonds would have had the Gem disposed of.”

Pearl wiped her eyes of the impending tears. She knew Peridot was right, but what else could they do?   
“…perhaps…we can…” her voice trailed off; trying to think of something else to suggest. 

“We will have to wait and see what happens,” Garnet stated.

The entire room had become silent once again. No one wanted to admit they had no other choices left to them.   
“…You guys can go. I’ll look after her,” Steven said quietly, breaking the awkward silence.

“Hey,” Amethyst began in a huff, “just because she’s your girlfriend now, doesn’t mean you’re the only one that cares about her.” The short soldier sat herself down next to Steven with a small smile. “Spinel is my friend. So I’m not going anywhere.”

“Of course, I feel the same,” added Pearl as she sat down at the edge of the bed on the other side of Steven. “I’ve been with Spinel since she formed. I’m staying too.”

“Clearly, I’m going to stay too,” Garnet chimed in.

“Well I may not have known Spinel that long, but she is a lot like my student,” Peridot insisted, setting herself at the end of the bed. “She would clearly be lost without me.”

“You know that I was the one in charge of teaching Spinel, right?” Pearl sighed irately.

Steven laughed lightly, tearing up as he held tight to Spinel’s hand. Since they became a couple, Steven felt like they had to handle things on their own. Mostly because it seemed like everyone was against them somehow. However, he was once again reminded that even if he and Spinel were a couple, they were still part of this family as well. The Gems all cared about Spinel too.  
“…Thanks guys…” he mumbled tearfully.

Though Steven tried his best, he couldn’t stay up the entire night, but was comforted by the fact that even if he did fall asleep, the others were there with Spinel. When he opened his eyes the next morning, he awoke with a start, quickly sitting up to check on Spinel.

“Her fever is gone, but she hasn’t woken up yet,” Garnet explained when she saw Steven look Spinel over in a panic. “However, the biggest change is this,” she added, reaching over and pulling down the blanket to reveal Spinel’s Gem that had become completely black in color.

Steven’s heart sank like a stone when he caught glimpse of the black Gem over Spinel’s chest.   
“…what…does that mean?” he breathed, completely frozen in place.

“I don’t know,” answered Garnet honestly. “Pearl left for Homeworld when it happened. I couldn’t talk her out of it.”

Steven wasn’t sure what to say. In truth, his mind was completely blank. The girl he loved was lying in front of him and she needed help, but he was useless. This was the second time she really needed him and he wasn’t able to do a single thing.   
“Garnet…please tell me what to do…” Steven pleaded with tear filled eyes. “You always know what to do. …just…tell me how to fix this. There has to be something…anything I can do…”

Garnet was quiet for a moment before gently tapping her visor, revealing her sympathetic expression.   
“Don’t give up hope, Steven,” she began, placing her hand atop his head. “We’re doing everything we can. No one is going to stop until Spinel is back.” 

Unfortunately for Steven and the other Gems, the rest of the day had gone no better.   
Pearl returned from Homeworld with no answers and none of Peridot’s equipment was offering any results. They had even resorted to asking a human doctor, Connie’s mother, for help. Yet there seemed to be little she could come up with as well. They all had their responsibilities in Little Homeworld, but leaving Spinel like this was difficult for them all. It wasn’t just Spinel they worried about either. Steven had remained at her bedside all day and refused the food that was offered to him. His Father had come by to sit with his son, but he couldn’t seem to convince the boy to take a break. Connie was the last visitor of the day, stopping by just after her violin lesson.

“I’m sorry my mom wasn’t able to help,” Connie began as she entered the room.

“It was a long shot anyway…” Steven sighed in reply.

Connie made her way to Spinel’s bedside and looked down at the black Gem on her chest.   
“Have you tried…connecting with her Gem?”

“Garnet says I shouldn’t…since we don’t know what made it change color like this, but I’ve been thinking about it. The others keep coming in to check on her though, so I haven’t had the chance to try without them stopping me.”

Connie looked around, “Well, I’m the only one here now,” she pointed out in a hushed voice. “If anyone comes by, I can just pretend you’re sleeping.”

“Yeah? …Okay, I’ll give it a shot. Keep an eye on my Gem for me. If it starts to turn black or something, wake me up if you can.” Steven instructed as he leaned his back against the frame of his bed, preparing to force himself asleep so he could attempt a connection with Spinel.

“You just be careful and bring Spinel back,” Connie insisted, kneeling down beside him to clasp his hand. “Jam buds.”

“Jam buds,” Steven repeated with a smile before closing his eyes.


	4. Let Me In

It didn’t take long for Steven to fall asleep; after all, he had been so worried about Spinel that he barely slept. When he opened his eyes, he knew he was no longer in his bedroom, but he wasn’t sure where he ended up. The last time he connected with Spinel’s Gem, he was placed back in the Garden that she shared with his Mother. There was nothing here and it felt as if he was sinking slowly into the black mass he was standing on.

“Spinel?” Steven called out into the black void. When there was no answer, he forced himself to trudge through the thick, black slime. Was this sludge the stuff that was taking over Spinel’s Gem, or was he in the wrong place? Steven wandered around for a while calling out for Spinel, but without a reply, he had no idea what to do.   
“Come on, Spinel,” he whispered under his breath. “Give me a little help here.”

“Steven?!” Spinel gasped in surprise, kneeling on all fours, the black goo gripping like a strange web at her arms and legs, trying to pull her down. “What are you doing here?! You have to get out!”

“Spinel!” Steven exclaimed happily, moving as fast as he could to get to her.

“Stay back! It might take you t---!!” Spinel’s warning was cut off when the webbing forced her down into the slime.

“Wait—NO!” He cried out, barely reaching where she struggled before she was pulled down. He kneeled down and dug his arms into the muddy substance, hoping to somehow pull her back out. Frantically, his hands searched blindly through the muck. He was on his hands and knees, reaching down until the slime was up to his shoulders. Just as he was about dive in completely to find her, he felt something solid. Holding tight Steven pulled as hard as he could, thankfully, forcing Spinel to surface. “Thank the stars,” Steven gasped, quickly pulling her into an embrace to keep her from sinking once again. “Come on, we’re getting out of here.”

Spinel coughed up a bit of the Black gunk as Steven held her close.   
“St-Steven…I…when I get pulled down, I keep hearing a voice…”

“Whatever this is, we just need you to wake up. We can sort it out after that.” Insisted Steven as he looked around, trying to figure out how they could escape. When he connected with a Gem, the only way to leave was to solve the issue plaguing them, but he didn’t know what this was.

Back in Steven’s room, Connie was anxiously looking after Steven and Spinel, watching both of their Gems to see if there was any change. Luckily, Steven’s Gem hadn’t changed at all and it looked like Spinel’s Gem was shifting back to its pink color slowly.

“Connie? I didn’t know you were here,” greeted Pearl as she entered Steven’s room.

With a flinch, Connie quickly stood in front of her sleeping friend and smiled. “OH! Y-yeah, I wanted to check and Spinel and see how Steven was doing. While we were visiting, he uh…fell asleep.”

“I see…” Pearl replied as she walked up to the end of the bed, staring down at Spinel with a melancholy sigh. “…well thank you for coming. I’m sure they both appreciated it. You don’t have to stay while they’re sleeping; you should go home and get some rest yourself.”

Connie stiffened a bit. She couldn’t leave and let them find out what Steven did.   
“Uuuuh….I think I’d like to stay just a little longer if you don’t mind. I actually brought one of Spinel’s favorite books. I was hoping if I read it aloud, she might be able to hear me.” It wasn’t a lie. She had actually brought the book with her and had planned to read it aloud as she said, but that was before they thought of connecting with her.

“That sounds lovely, I’m sure that she would enjoy that. You know…I was the one who had to teach Spinel to read and write in human. Rose was the one that brought in a bunch of books she had gotten from a human that was traveling around. Spinel saw that book and was determined to read it on her own…”

Connie smiled, “So, Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland was the first book she ever read?”

Pearl nodded, “yes, she liked that it didn’t make any sense. For months, she was reciting the poems and singing them in a weird way. Rose really got a kick out of it. When Steven was little…she’d recite the poems for him too. That book never made any sense to me, but neither did Spinel.”

Connie pulled two books from her bag and sat herself beside Steven, This way, she could keep an eye on his Gem from the corner of her eye.   
“Well, if you’d like to hear the story again, you’re welcome to stay.”

“Oh…no, I’ve had enough of that story to last a few more thousand years. Well, I suppose if you’re looking after them, I will go and look over the class schedules. We’ve been so worried about Spinel that we’ve been falling behind on our work.”

Connie waved cheerfully at Pearl as she left the room, quickly looking back at Steven and Spinel once she was gone. She was relieved to see there had been no changes and that Pearl didn’t suspect anything. She didn’t want to be caught in a lie by her teacher. Connie wasn’t sure either of them could hear her right now, but she reached over, placing one hand on Steven’s shoulder and the other over Spinel’s hand. “…please hurry you two…”

As Connie began to read from her book, Steven and Spinel were still trying to think of a way out.  
Though Steven was not happy about trudging through the black slime, he was just glad Spinel was with him.

“What are we looking for?” asked Spinel, noting how tightly Steven was holding her hand as they waded along.

“Anything,” replied Steven. “You said you heard a voice. Maybe there is something else in here.”

“It didn’t sound friendly…” she informed him quietly. “…I think it was angry at me…”

“We just have to find it and talk with it. I’m sure whatever it is, we can help it and or convince it to help us.”

Spinel sighed, “I’m telling you, it doesn’t sound like anything good. …I…really don’t think we should try and talk with it. I think it—AGH!”

Before Spinel could finish, Spinel was suddenly dropped down into the black goop once again, forcing Steven to his knees since their hands were linked. However, he could no longer feel her hand once it was beneath the liquid. Immediately panicking, Steven didn’t hesitate this time to dive under and go after her. He couldn’t see anything when he dove in, but after a moment, a small glint of pink light began flickering in the dark. As it was all he could see, Steven swam for it at once, hoping it was Spinel trying to tell him where she was. Still, it seemed like no matter how fast he swam, he wasn’t getting any closer. Was it moving away? Whatever this was, it seemed insistent on dragging Spinel down. Why was it only taking her? The deeper he went, the more he could hear. Spinel was right; there was a voice down here. At first it sounded like whispers, but it got louder as he went on. 

“Let me in. Let me in. Let me in! LET ME **IN**!”

The voice sounded female and just as Spinel said, it seemed angry and desperate. Something about it gave Steven the chills, but it didn’t slow him down. “I-I don’t know what you want,” he called out, “but please, just give her back! I can help you, but give her back!”

“Help me? Help me. Let me in. Let me in. Give her back.”

Did this thing even understand what he was saying? It just seemed to be repeating his words. “Yes! I’ll help you! I promise! Just—just bring her back to me, please!” He tried again, pleading with the voice as he continued for what he hoped to be Spinel’s light.

“Back,” repeated the voice, “back. Get back. GO BACK!” As the voice went on, the light was getting closer. Was it listening to him and allowing him to reach Spinel? With the voice still repeating in the background, he was nearly there. However, the light only got brighter and blinded him, forcing Steven to shield his eyes.   
“Help me go back,” the voice screeched through the bright light as everything went dark for Steven once again.

With a panicked gasp, both Steven and Spinel shot up from their sleep, forcing an alarmed squeak from Connie as she nearly dropped the book in her hands. The young girl quickly collected herself, “You’re both awake,” she exclaimed happily.

Spinel sat up in Steven’s bed, quiet and confused.  
“Spinel!! You’re back!” Steven said cheerfully as he got to his feet and leaned over the bed to pull Spinel into an embrace.

Connie smiled meekly, “I kinda feel like I’m interrupting…” she joked.

Steven laughed and extended an arm as an invitation for Connie to join. She giggled and wrapped her arms around the two of them, Spinel stuck in the middle, still confused. Not that she didn’t appreciate a group hug when one was offered.

“What’s going on?” asked Spinel finally.

Steven and Connie glanced at one another before pulling back, both kneeling on the bed now.   
“You…don’t remember anything that happened?” Steven asked, looking at her Gem to make sure the color hadn’t changed. It appeared to be back to normal.   
“Not even that voice you heard?”

“Voice?” Spinel repeated, clearly unsure what he was talking about.

Now that Steven thought about it, that voice never really said what it wanted and they never found out what it was or why it was inside Spinel. They just came back out of nowhere. Was it gone now? He couldn’t see any trace of black color on Spinel’s Gem, but it was strange to think the mysterious being would just leave. It sounded like it wanted something and it didn’t sound happy at all. He had wanted to help it if he could. Still, at least Spinel was okay now. Even if she didn’t remember what happened, it didn’t matter as long as everything was back to normal.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, I hope everyone is enjoying this so far, but as I said before this Fanfic is going to be far Darker than my last one. So...from here on out, I hope no one gets mad at me cause it's going to be rather graphic with Sex and Violence. Not Gore though. No worries. However, in between, cute things will also happen. Just...don't hate me. 
> 
> Just a Warning for you all. If you want to stop reading, now is your chance before you read something you can't UNREAD.


	5. Ground Rules

Steven and the Gems were happy to have Spinel back, even if Steven was still a little worried about her memory, at least she didn’t forget anything important. Peridot scanned Spinel to double check things, but they couldn’t find anything wrong. Connie and Steven kept it a secret that he’d gone inside Spinel’s Gem. So far, it didn’t seem like an important detail. Spinel was better now. So it was over, right?

“I’m telling you all, I’m fine,” Spinel insisted, pulling off the cords that Peridot had attached to her Gem.

“But we still don’t know what caused you to collapse, or why your Gem changed color like that,” insisted Peridot, annoyed that Spinel wasn’t sitting still.

“She’s clearly better though,” Steven interjected happily, sitting next to Spinel on the couch where Peridot was looking her over.

“That’s not the point,” the short green Gem growled irately. “Without knowing what caused this, there is a chance it will happen again.”

“We couldn’t even figure out what it was when it was happening. I doubt we’ll find anything now. I’ll keep an eye on her and if something happens, we can look into it then.” Steven suggested, blissfully forcing himself into denial about this. He just wanted to believe that everything was better and nothing bad would happen to Spinel again. He didn’t think his heart could handle seeing her in danger like that anymore. “Also, this does seem like a good opportunity now that you’re all here,” Steven began, addressing all the Gems gathered around them.   
“Soon, it will be three months since Spinel and I started a relationship. On that anniversary, I want to do something special. Meaning, from this point on, we want to be left **alone**. That means, no more following us on dates, no more restrictions on time spent alone together in the house, no more entering my bedroom by **_chance_** when we’re in there, and more importantly whatever goes on between Spinel and I is **_our_** business.”

Garnet and Amethyst didn’t seem surprised by these conditions, but when they glanced at Pearl, she seemed rather taken aback. She had expected them to be annoyed by her actions, but she didn’t like most of the guidelines Steven was insisting upon.

“B-but the last time you two were alone, Spinel had those—“

“—Hickeys!” interrupted Peridot with a sense of pride in knowing the proper term. “Also known as love bites,” she finished happily.

Steven sighed with a blush while Amethyst stifled a laugh.   
“…and next time that happens, I’ll be sure to heal them. We just kinda forgot about it last time…”

“Next time?!” exclaimed Pearl. “There shouldn’t be a next—“

“—Pearl,” Garnet interjected, placing her hand on the startled Gems shoulder. “Steven is right. I know you’re worried about them, but this has gone on too long. I’m sorry Steven; I had hoped a different path would be taken.”

Spinel stood up, glancing at Pearl with a troubled expression.   
“I know you still see me like I was just made, but I’ve learned a lot in all these years and just because this is the first time I’ve been in love…doesn’t mean I don’t know what I’m doing. Even if I don’t, I want to do all this myself. I’m a Crystal Gem too. You trusted me to fight a war with you and defend the Earth, why can’t you trust me to be with Steven?”

Pearls shoulders dropped, unsure how to answer Spinel. It was true. She’d been there when Spinel was created; she was tasked with teaching and watching over Spinel during the colonization of Earth, and even now she still felt Spinel was her responsibility.   
“I-I do trust you…” Pearl began, averting her gaze shamefully. “I’m sorry for all the trouble. I…will try my best not to interfere with you two...from now on…”

Steven and Spinel glanced at one another. Though Pearl was agreeing to respect their privacy, it seemed very difficult for her, which only concerned them further. This was probably not going to run as smoothly as they hoped.

“I’ll keep an eye on her,” Garnet added.

Pearl wasn’t excited by this, but it did relieve Steven and Spinel a little.   
“Thanks guys. Now, it’s pretty late and I’m going to get some sleep. C’mon, Spinel.”

As Spinel followed Steven up the stairs, an anxious groan escaped Pearls lips, only prompting Garnet to tighten her grip on the Gems shoulder.

Leaving the other Crystal Gems to talk things over, Steven and Spinel sat themselves on the bed with synchronized sighs.   
“Don’t you need to change,” asked Spinel as Steven lay back on the comforter.

“I will…” he replied with a yawn, “…I just want to sit for a second.”

“I didn’t think you were going to talk with them so soon. Do you think it will be okay?”

The blush rushed back to Steven’s cheeks and he stared at the ceiling to avoid meeting her eyes.   
“…I originally wanted to plan what to say, but…um…after what just happened, I wanted to say my piece as soon as possible. Cause…you know…I wanted to plan our next date…without worrying about Pearl and everything else.”

“Oh right, you said you wanted to do something special. What are you planning?” She asked, turning around and sitting herself on his lap to look down at him as he stared at the ceiling. “Is it a secret?”

His breath hitched lightly when Spinel sat herself on top of him. He forced himself to keep his gaze on the ceiling, trying to think of **anything** else.  
“I-I thought we could take a trip or something. I…because…”

As his voice trailed off, Spinel felt something poke against her bottom. Her cheeks tinted pink, but she smiled down at Steven who was still avoiding eye contact.   
“Are you comfortable like this?” she asked knowingly.

“N-not now Spinel…” he pleaded, trying to redirect his thoughts.

“Want me to help you change? You’ll be uncomfortable if you’re not in your pajamas,” continued Spinel, reaching down and grabbing the bottom if his shirt.

“Seriously,” Steven growled, grabbing Spinel’s wrists and rolling over to pin Spinel down on her back. “You’re going to get us both in trouble. Everyone is still out there.”

Spinel stuck out her tongue playfully, “I was just offering to make you feel better. I read somewhere that that’s uncomfortable.”

Steven took a deep breath, “what are you reading,” he asked, feeling horribly exasperated by this. He was trying so hard to wait. He wanted the first real night they spent together to be just about them. He certainly didn’t want it to be while they had to be worried about someone hearing them or interrupting. However, Spinel was not making this easy. "I'm gonna have to just ask that you don't tempt me until we go on our little vacation."

Spinel frowned, "does that mean...you won't touch me until then?"

"N-not entirely, I don't have **that** much will power," answered Steven.

"And kisses? You'll still kiss me, right?" Spinel continued, truly concerned that he'd avoid any intimate situation with her now.

"Of course I will," he answered at once. He didn't like the cold showers and constant frustration, but he wanted to treasure her properly. However, if he went cold turkey, he'd just end up losing his mind. "I just...have a few things I need to prepare before we take our little vacation."

Spinel stared up at Steven and smiled now. He was trying so hard. She may not have understood his need to make everything special, but she knew it made him happy. He was doing his best, perhaps she should be doing a little more as well? "Okay. Maybe I can prepare a few things myself."

"Why does that only make me worry?" Steven half joked.

"You shouldn't," Spinel insisted, "I'm going to be the best girlfriend you've ever had."

With a laugh, Steven sighed and laid himself beside her, running his hand through his hair. "Technically, you're the only girlfriend I've had."

Spinel sat up at once, staring down at Steven in surprise. "R-really? ...but what about...?" Her voice trailed off, feeling a bit awkward bringing up Connie right now.

However, it seemed Steven knew what she was thinking. "I never actually asked her to be my girlfriend. We were just...together." He explained, trying to choose his words carefully so that he didn't upset Spinel. Though he couldn't help feeling nervous over the silence that followed. When he glanced up at her face, it was clear that he'd made a mistake. Spinel was just staring down at the blankets with a blank expression. For reminding her of his relationship with Connie that upsetting? It wasn't as if it had been a secret. Sitting up, he placed his hands gently on Spinels shoulders and tried to rectify the situation. "A-are you mad?"

Spinel shook her head lightly. She wasn't. Or at least, she shouldn't have been. After all, Steven had ended anything romantic with Connie before they officially began dating. She'd also had a long talk with her too and they were slowly getting on better terms. Still, picturing Steven touching another girl as he'd touched her, it left a terrible feeling at the pit of her stomach. "Did you two...do things...like we do?"

It took Steven a moment to realize what she was asking and he felt his heart sink. He was not able to lie to her. "We—I...we just...I mean not as far as..." Steven stammered, unsure how to answer her. No matter what, she was not going to be happy. "It was really just...kissing..." he admitted finally, hoping that would be a sufficient enough answer that Spinel would just let it go.

"I don't like it..." mumbled Spinel bitterly. She knew that there was no changing what already happened, but she hated thinking about it. "...you're mine."

Steven didn’t want Spinel to be upset, but he couldn’t deny that it was a little cute how she was still jealous over Connie. At least she didn’t seem to completely dislike her anymore.   
“There’s nothing to worry about,” he began, leaning over to kiss her cheek, “you’re the only one I want to kiss from now on.”

Spinel’s Gem began to glow and Steven smiled. However, when he looked down at her chest, he could swear that the color of her Gem changed to black for a split second.   
“What’s wrong.” Asked Spinel when she noticed him staring in concern down at her Gem.

“…n-nothing,” Steven answered quickly, forcing a smile. “Everything is fine.”   
At least that’s what he wanted. He wanted this to be over. Spinel was fine now and he didn’t want to think about her being in danger anymore. So long as he kept her close from now on, nothing else could go wrong.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Preview of Next Chapter: Steven is trying to prepare for a special vacation with Spinel, which means asking for important and embarrassing Advice from his father and needing to find a Gem who might understand his concerns.  
> Spinel will also be preparing in her own way, but it may not make Steven very happy when he finds out who she is asking for help.
> 
> A/N: Sorry of this chapter has mistakes. I’m sick and have been operating on sick brain for the last couple of days. I almost confused my toothpaste with my face wash this morning, so…yeah.


	6. Planning, Perplexed, and Provoked

The next morning, Steven woke up alone, leaving him to wonder where Spinel had run off to so early. He had convinced her not to worry about Connie and finally get some sleep, but he was still a bit concerned that she wasn’t going to let it go. He knew it was difficult for her to trust people after she felt used by his mother. Hopefully, she trusted him enough to believe his words. Its not like anything he said was a lie. Of course he still loved Connie very much, but his romantic feelings for her had all but gone.

Spinel had mentioned that she wanted to prepare for their trip as well. Yet another reason for Steven to be concerned. She was rather unpredictable, so he had no idea what she was thinking had to be prepared on her part

This was Stevens first time as a boyfriend and he was determined to play his role perfectly from here on out. However, that did require a few embarrassing tasks he would have to complete before the small vacation he had planned. One of which, meant he would need some advice from his dad and he was not looking forward to that conversation. With all this in mind, Steven dragged himself out of bed to get himself ready for the day. Hopefully, he’d be able to get the more awkward tasks done as soon as possible.

As Steven compiled his list of errands in his head, Spinel was already working on a few of her own. Last night, she realized that she was Stevens first official girlfriend and if that was the case, she needed to do her best to be his last. The only problem was, she had no idea what her job was as a girlfriend. Peridot had told her that she had to be affectionate with Steven, but that’s all she said. Spinel was sure that she’d need a human’s advice on this. After all, Gem relationships were a lot different from human ones and surely Steven was looking for a more human experience as boyfriend and girlfriend.

Her biggest problem now was finding a human to ask for advice. Ideally, she would have liked to ask a human female, but the only one she knew well enough for this was Connie and surely it would be insulting to her for Spinel to ask advice like this so soon. So after scanning her brain, Spinel found herself walking into Lars’ bakery, hoping that he would have some insight on this for her.

“Good morning,” Lars greeted as he stepped out from the back, but surprised when he saw that Spinel was here alone. It was always unusual to see her about town with Steven. “Spinel, what brings you here so early? I told you that if you wanted to eat the batter, I’d just send some over.”

Spinel shook her head, “I uh…came here for some advice. Do you have a minute?”

“Advice,” repeated Lars curiously. “Well, I’m not sure what I could possibly help you with, but I guess I’ll try?”

Spinel smiled now, “great! I need to know how to be the perfect girlfriend! Like, should I wear something specific? Am I supposed to match his clothes? Do I have to do anything specific when we are in bed? How do I—”

Lars had darted from the counter and clamped his hand over Spinels mouth before she could finish. “Hold up,” he insisted before cautiously removed his hand. “Why are you asking me how to be a good girlfriend? Shouldn’t you be asking, you know, a girl?!”

Spinels pigtails drooped lightly, “…I don’t really know any human girls I can ask and I’m not very close to any other humans except for you.”

“But Steven has lots of other friends that I’ve seen you talk to.”

“I was only friendly with them because of Steven. Because I had Steven…I didn’t really even think about making any other human friends.”

Lars sighed, “I’m really the only one you can ask?”

Spinel nodded her head, “please help me.”

Lars was not very comfortable giving advice like this. Though, maybe he could help with some generic information about relationships. “Okay, okay,” he agreed as he rubbed the back of his neck. “I can probably help with some little things, but I really think you’d be better off finding a girl to talk to.”

With that, Lars sat down with Spinel at a table and allowed her to ask her questions. While they began their awkward talk, Steven was on his way to have his own embarrassing conversation.

He had made his way to his father’s Van, which was normally parked beside the Carwash. Even after all these years with his money, Greg really didn’t seem like he wanted to do anything with it.

“Hey, Dad, you in there?” Steven asked as he knocked on the back doors of the old vehicle. One of doors opened with a long metallic groan and he was greeted by his Father who had clearly just been woken up.

“Morn'n Schtu-ball,” Greg began cheerfully. “Shouldn’t you be at little Homeschool?”

“…not this morning. I uh, actually came to talk about my 18th birthday. Cause I know you—”

“—oh well already have a few things planned, but did you want to ask for something specific?”

“Uh…sort of,” Steven continued. “I know you guys wanted to celebrate with me and we still can, I was just kinda hoping that maybe…we could cancel the party and…instead…Spinel and I could take a little…trip?” This should have been the least awkward part of the conversation, but he knew how much his dad was looking forward to this birthday. “I mean, we can all have a party or something afterwards. I just…I mean it’s a big birthday and I wanted to…”

“You want to spend it with your girlfriend,” Greg finished for his son with a nod. Truthfully, he was a little disappointed. His son was turning 18 and now that he had a girlfriend, he was spending less time with his old dad. Still, this was how things usually went and this was new to Steven. He certainly remembered what it felt like to be in love.

Steven blushed lightly and glanced down at the ground. “We-well, yeah. Just a small trip for some…time alone. It’s a little awkward with the gems always around and Pearl is still circling us like a shark.”

“Yeah, I’ve been there.” Greg laughed. “Don’t worry, son, I get it. Where are you planning to go?”

“Uh, well…I wanted to go somewhere that Spinel would have fun. A place with a big amusement park or something. She likes Funland a lot after all. I thought she would enjoy going on bigger rollercoasters and seeing the shows. She mentioned wanting to go once when she saw a commercial about a year ago. Everything was just so busy; we all had to tell her no.”

Greg watched his son as he thought aloud, talking about the plans for his birthday as if it was all for Spinel. It was quite nostalgic. When he was with Rose, all he ever thought about was making her happy. It seemed that Steven was no different. “That sounds like a great time,” Greg agreed, “but Spinel can be…excitable. I hope she doesn’t break something or…someone if she gets startled.”

“I think I can keep her calm,” Steven added, even if he was little concerned over that as well.

“Soooo…will you two…be…staying overnight?” Greg finally asked while clearing his throat. Pearl had spoken with him about Steven and Spinel being a little intimate and he had been looking for an opportunity to have ‘the talk.’ Perhaps this was a good chance to guide the conversation that way.

“Yeah, a couple nights actually,” answered Steven. “I didn’t want to rush our time at the park or…anything.”

Greg nodded his head, trying to remember everything he had practiced saying for the last couple of days. “Well you know, son, when a man and a Gem are in love—-”

Steven blushed and put out his hands to stop his father. “D-dad, wait! You don’t have to go through the whole thing…”

Greg was clearly nervous, but he did appear slightly disappointed. Wasn’t this one of the things a father was supposed to do? “Oh…yeah, I guess you wouldn’t need me to explain too much. I mean…you know, the internet and all.”

“Well…no, I did want to talk with you about…some things,” Steven began awkwardly. “Cause this will be our first…um…” his voice trailed off and he wasn’t sure how to finish. Sex was a natural thing when you loved someone and he knew that, but it was still embarrassing to talk about with his dad.

Greg took a deep breath and puffed up his chest before placing his hand on his sons shoulder. “Don’t worry, Son. Your dads got this.”

While Steven was dealing with the can of worms he had opened, Spinel and Lars had been talking about her own concerns. Luckily for Lars, she wasn’t asking anything too difficult.

“So, what I’m saying is,” Lars continued as Spinel listened eagerly from the seat across him. “You don’t have to do anything for him specifically. Just be yourself.”

“But…than what’s the difference between me as his friend and me as his girlfriend? I’ve been trying to come up with my own answer…but besides the things we do in private, not much has changed…” said Spinel quietly, still worried she was doing all this wrong.

“A-and…” Lars started with a light blush, “…that’s fine. Nothing has to change that much. Just…do what you’ve always done. I’m sure Steven would tell you the same.”

“Do you really think so? I mean, Steven was saying how he wanted to prepare things for a trip he wanted us to take. Doesn’t that mean I should prepare some stuff too? And what should I prepare? As a girlfriend, how am I supposed to make things special for him like he does for me?”

“Well now…this is where you would be better off talking to another girl,” answered Lars with a nervous laugh. “Why don’t you ask Pearl or something? Isn’t she like, basically your mom or something?”

Spinel sighed miserably as she shrunk in her seat, “Pearl has never been with a human. Gems treat relationships a little different than humans do. So asking another Gem seems pointless.”

“Oh, yeah I guess I can see that…” he trailed off, unsure how to help with this part. If only he had a sister to pawn this off on. Sadie wasn’t in town and she’d probably be way too shy to talk about this stuff with Spinel. “Well…you know, there is nothing wrong with figuring this stuff out as you go. Though…haven’t you been around humans for what, thousands of years? You didn’t have any other human partners? In all that time?”

Spinel shook her head. “I came here with my friend and that’s all I needed. Besides, we spent most of our time fighting corrupted gems. I did meet lots of humans because of Rose, but I never…felt anything for them like this.”

Lars smiled a bit. Spinel’s naivety and innocence on these subjects made her seem so adorable. Like a bunny worried about coming out of its hole. It was odd since Spinel was thousands of years older than him, but he couldn’t help seeing her as younger than he was. “I don’t think you need to worry so much. Just the fact that you want to be a good girlfriend, will make you a good girlfriend. At least, that’s what I think. Besides, you know that you could probably talk with Steven about all this. If you want to do things that make him happy, just ask him what makes him happy. You don’t have to do stuff in secret.”

“…I really hope so,” replied Spinel with a small smile. “Thanks for talking with me about all this.”

Lars stood from his seat and sighed, feeling a little accomplished. Maybe he was getting wiser? “No problem. I’m not sure I was able to help much, but hopefully you won’t be worrying too much now.”

Spinel stood up as well and gave Lars a quick hug as she expressed her thanks. Lars pat her head lightly in response, but in that moment, it felt as if something had stabbed him in the chest and his legs gave way from the pain.

“Lars?!” Spinel exclaimed as she knelt down with him to see what was wrong. She couldn’t see anything physical, but for a moment, the whites of Lars eyes appeared to turn completely black. Though it went away so quickly that she wasn’t really sure it had happened.

“What did you do to him?!” Sodalite shouted in concern as she rushed into the bakery and hurried to Lars’ side. “G-get away from him!”

“Wha-I didn’t do anything!” Spinel insisted. “He just suddenly—”

Sodalite looked terrified, but she wrapped her arms around Lars shoulders in an attempt to block him from Spinel. “J-just wait a moment! I-I saw my Diamond just d-down the street. She will heal you…”

“You mean Steven?” Spinel asked hopefully. Who else would Sodalite mean? This was good timing. Whatever was hurting Lars, Steven could fix it. “Here, help me get him into a chair,” insisted Spinel as she reached for Lars.

“N-no! You can’t touch him!” Sodalite shouted with a shaky voice.

Spinel was silent, staring at Sodalite with a blank stare until her eyes became dark for a split second. Sodalite gasped and her whole body began to tremble. “Y-you’re…—”

Spinel smiled, her eyes turning dark once more. “It’s just a game, if you play nice, Lars won’t be hurt.” As Spinel Spoke, Lars woke up, his eyes blackened out as well.

Sodalite seemed like she was going to reply, but out of the corner of her eye she could see Steven approaching the store and she panicked even further. She let out a small gasp and everything around them became completely dark due to her fear.

Steven had barely noticed Spinel inside the store before the black out and he found himself panicking as well. Sodalite always freaked out like this, but more so around Spinel. He quickly opened the door and walked into the darkened store. “Sodalite, you need to calm down!” He called out into the void, unable to see where the others were. Luckily, it didn’t take much more than that for the darkness to recede back towards Sodalite.

Steven was relieved, but only for a second until he saw something that stopped him cold. He and Sodalite were both staring wide eyed as Lars had a shocked Spinel pinned up against the wall, forcing a kiss on the pigtailed Gem.

“LARS!” Steven shouted furiously, his entire body turning a pink hue as a fragmented shield formed around Spinels body, a rush of force pushing Lars away from her.

Sodalite was quick enough to catch the pink human as he was thrown backward. Lars was a little disoriented from the blow, placing his hand on his aching head. “Wha…what hit me?” He asked in a daze.

“What the hell were you doing?!” Demanded Steven as the ground began to crack beneath them.

“Pl-please, my Diamond!” Sodalite began with tears in her eyes, horribly terrified that she would be cracked or shattered any moment in Pinks angry outburst. Still, she had let go of Lars and bowed down in front of Steven with trembling hands as she saluted him. “He-he didn’t know what he was doing! It-must have been—”

“Huh? Hold on,” Lars started, his thoughts finally becoming less hazy. “What’s going on?! Steven, what are you doing? You’re gonna wreck the place if you don’t calm down!”

 **“SHUT UP!”** Steven shouted in reply. This wasn’t like when Spinel had been reset. He didn’t have a real reason to be angry with Lars back then, but now, he was overwhelmed by the desire to crush something.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Once again, I'm sorry if there are too many mistakes. Sick brain still reigns supreme. Also, I am sorry Lars, you're just the first pawn in this game. I feel bad for Steven too. Cause this is gonna be real hard on him from now on.


	7. Impatience

Spinel was still trying to process what had happened. The last thing she remembered was trying to help Lars to a chair before everything went dark. When the light returned to the room, she was being held against the wall with an unfamiliar tongue in her mouth. It was disgusting to think that someone other than Steven had kissed her like that, but she couldn't figure out how it happened and that worried her the most. Though she didn't have a lot of time to figure it out considering Steven looked like he was about to demolish the building.

"St-Steven! Calm down!" Spinel pleaded, knocking her fists against the shield he had placed around her. She was stuck in a strangely shaped box, unable to get to him.

"Calm down?!" Steven repeated, trying his best not to completely lose his head, but he couldn't get the image of Lars kissing Spinel out of his mind and the rage that followed just wouldn't cool. "He was—-why were you touching **My Spinel**?!" Steven demanded once again.

Lars was still confused, but after thinking about it for a moment, he did remember bits and pieces. He recalled a pain in his chest and then everything going dark. However, the most alarming recollection consisted of this overwhelming urge he had to touch Spinel. Why? It was hazy, but he could remember, if only for a brief moment, losing all control and kissing Spinel as if he couldn't help himself. After that, everything went black again and he was facing a very angry Steven.

"I...Steven, I honestly don't know how that happened!" Lars began, not sure how to explain this away. He had done it, but he didn't know why. He didn't feel that way about Spinel and even if he did, he wasn't the type to go force himself on a girl with a boyfriend. So how on earth did this happen? "I didn't—"

"M-My Diamond, please," Sodalite began, standing in front of a bewildered Lars. She wasn't sure what had happened that was so terrible, but she didn't want Lars to get hurt.

"Steven, honestly, I would never—" Lars tried again, still trying to figure this out.

"I **saw** you," shouted Steven.

"Steven! Let me out, please!" Spinel pleaded.

Looking back, Steven saw the panicked expression on Spinel’s face and felt another stab at his chest. He didn't like reacting this way and he knew it worried the people around him. He didn't want to scare anyone. Gritting his teeth and closing his eyes tight, Steven did his best to calm down. It really wasn't easy. Everyone watched in silence as the pink color faded from Steven and the shield around Spinel disappeared.

Once she was free, Spinel rushed over to Steven’s side and hugged his arm. She was still confused, but at least Steven wasn't going to break anything anymore.

"...what...is going on...?" Steven asked, staring at the ground, refusing to look at Lars in case it set him off again. Lars was his friend, how could he do something like this? It made no sense at all. It just hurt.

"I-it was my fault!" Sodalite spoke up again. "I-I got scared and—-I-I must have made Lars see something and he g-got confused." It was a lie, but hopefully a good enough one to settle this. After all, no one knew that the illusions she produced only happened when she was broken. Not to mention that it only affected Gems.

Lars was the only one that knew Sodalite wasn't telling the truth, but was he really going to call her out on it when the alternative was admitting he had forced himself on Stevens girlfriend and he had no idea why?

Now Steven was conflicted. Even if Lars was tricked by some sort of illusion, it didn't change what happened. It was also a little hard to believe. However, he wanted to believe it. Wasn't that better than thinking his friend had stabbed him in the back? Without another word, Steven reached over and grabbed Spinel by the hand, turning on his heel and pulling her towards the door.

Stevens’s car was parked just across the street, but he didn't bother getting in. Driving was probably a bad idea right now.

"St-Steven?" Spinel tried again as he pulled her along with him. He wouldn't even look back at her and she couldn't help noticing that they had passed by his vehicle. She had never seen him this angry before. Tears began to brim at the edge of her eyes, sure that Steven was furious with her. Would he break up with her now? They walked silently for so long that eventually Spinel just couldn't take it anymore and decided to try again. "I—-I'm so—"

"—-don't apologize," Steven interrupted with an uneven voice, finally breaking his stride. He had dragged Spinel with him towards the lighthouse, unsure how fast he had been walking to get there so quickly. However, even they had stopped, he didn't release her hand or turn to look at her. He didn't want her to see his face right now. "It wasn't your fault. ...so just...don't apologize." In truth, he would have preferred to be alone at the moment, but he wasn't about to leave Spinel there. He was still trying hard to convince himself of the story Sodalite had told him. He wanted so desperately to believe it was a mistake, but it was harder than he had hoped. Instead, he was left with this gut wrenching feeling that he couldn't trust one of his best friends.

"But...you're angry...and you should be. I was so shocked I froze, but I should have—"

"—-stop," Steven pleaded, finally turning around to see Spinel’s face. A mixed expression of pain, anger, and sadness were reflected in his eyes as he stared at her. "Yeah, I'm angry," he admitted, reaching over and gently running his thumb over Spinel’s lips. "Even if it was an accident...another man...someone else..." as he struggled to say it aloud, a terrible pit formed in his stomach and that awful jealous feeling was bubbling up once again. He had never felt it so strongly before.

Looking into her eyes now, Steven felt his own burn slightly as tears threatened to escape them. "I'm sorry for how I acted," he began, his voice cracking a bit. He was feeling so many different things right now and he hated every single one of them. When he saw Lars kissing Spinel, it felt like someone had punched him in the stomach and stopped his heart. It hurt. It was as if he'd caught a glimpse of what it would be like if Spinel loved someone else. He'd almost been killed several times and that was by far the worst thing he had experienced. He felt a terrible urge to lock Spinel away from prying eyes and he didn't like thinking that way. "I feel like such a child right now, but even when I was a kid I didn't want to keep you to myself like this. Back then...I wanted you to make friends and I probably would have been fine if you...fell in love with someone. I'm not a kid anymore and yet I'm acting like a spoiled brat."

"I want you to be spoiled," insisted Spinel. "I want to spoil you. You can be selfish with me and monopolize me all you want." She finished, taking his hand from her face to hold it between her own.

"But that's not healthy," replied Steven. "I want your world to grow around me, not get smaller because of me."

"I don't have a world without you," Spinel said simply. "So I don't care how spoiled you become with me, I will always be beside you. Just like you promised you'd stay beside me."

"Spinel...it feels like everything is going backwards," admitted Steven as he wiped his eyes with his free hand. "I feel like I was more mature as a child than I am now."

"I don't know why you are being so hard on yourself. If I saw you touching someone else...I don't know what I'd do. I think I'd lose my mind."

"I did lose my mind," Steven exclaimed shamefully. "I could have really hurt Lars and Sodalite. Even if he meant to do it, physically harming anyone is too much. I felt crazy. I still do. Even now...I can still see it in my head and it's taking a lot of self-control not to break something. I'm angry and I don't know where to direct it. I just want to fix it so that it never happened. I want to be the only one who's ever touched you. It's so irrational that I don't know how to make sense of it..."

"...I know how that feels," Spinel replied. "Thinking about you and Connie...I...get a little upset."

Steven took a moment to study Spinel’s expression. Why did it always turn out this way? When things seemed to be going well, something would come along to cause trouble for them. Was the very universe against them being together? Their little vacation couldn't come soon enough. He wanted to take her far away so they could just forget everything else. With a tired sigh, Steven took the sleeve of his jacket and gently wiped Spinel’s mouth, as if washing her of the germs that Lars had left behind. He would have to compensate Lars for the damage to the bakery, but he was not about to apologize for it. For now, he was sure that even speaking to Lars was out of the question. "I don't want to wait until my birthday," Steven started quietly. "I want to leave as soon as possible."

"Are you sure," asked Spinel in concern. Steven had been so excited about this trip. She didn't want to this to ruin everything he had planned.

"I'm sure," Steven answered right away. "Dad practically forced a bunch of money on me and we have Lion for travel. We can leave whenever we want."

"Could...we wait until I...get something? It shouldn't take too long. That was going to be my next stop today."

"After seeing Lars?" Asked Steven, feeling that pit in his stomach grow larger.

Spinel flinched lightly. "...well...yes," she answered. "I...went to him for advice. Cause I wanted to be a good girlfriend."

Steven laughed under his breath bitterly. He really hated this. He wanted to be mature about it, but he couldn't think of a way to do that. Lars was his friend. He was trying so hard to remind himself of that. However, he just couldn't handle this when it came to Spinel. "Let's just...go and get ready for our trip. I am more than ready to put some distance between us and beach city right now."

Though Spinel was glad Steven didn't cancel the trip, but she worried that today was not going to be forgotten so easily. There was something else that worried her too, but she was scared to bring it up. "...I know I'm in trouble...but...can I ask a favor?"

"In trouble?" Steven repeated curiously. "How are you in trouble?"

"Cause I did something wrong...and you're mad." Answered Spinel quietly, pulling at one of her pigtails now.

"Hold on," Steven began, "you didn't do anything wrong. I mean, Lars kissed you. You didn't respond or enjoy it, you were just surprised. ...right?" He really didn't want to talk about this. Spinel was honest and a part of him was worried she might admit she didn't hate it. Why was he doing this to himself?

"Right," Spinel agreed, noting the immediate look of relief on Stevens face. "It wasn't like your kisses. It wasn't warm...and it didn't make me happy. It was cold and I actually felt my skin crawl when I felt his tongue—"

"—-you don't have to describe it!" Steven interjected quickly. He was glad that she didn't enjoy it, but containing his anger over this was already difficult. "Just-come here," insisted Steven as he reached over and grabbed her waist, pulling a surprised Spinel forward until she was flush against his chest. "Let's agree not to talk about it. I'd rather forget the whole thing even happened."

"If...that's what you want," Spinel agreed with a smile. It wasn't usually like Steven to bury something that upset him, but she wasn't about to complain.

Steven smiled back and leaned in as if he were about to kiss her lips, but the image of Lars and Spinel was still fresh in his mind. Though he wanted to kiss her and make it go away, he couldn't be affectionate with her while he felt like this. Kissing her while he was upset wasn't fair to her. Instead, Steven planted a gentle kiss on her forehead. "I love you, he whispered, hoping it would reassure Spinel that he wasn't upset with her. He just didn't want to kiss her with this ugly feeling in the pit of his stomach.

Spinel was always happy to hear those words, but it did sting that he had clearly rethought kissing her.   
“I love you too…” she replied, forcing a smile.

Finally, Steven took Spinel’s hand and the two began their way home. Steven wanted to pack for the trip so they could quickly get out of there and Spinel needed to prepare one last thing. After all this, she was more determined than ever to show Steven that she could be a good girlfriend. Surely she hadn’t done a good job so far. Especially if he wouldn’t even kiss her. They just began this romantic part of their relationship and she was already messing it up. Hopefully, once she got what she needed and they were away from Beach City, she could turn this around and Steven would see how perfect a girlfriend she could be.


	8. A Surprise For Steven

Once they arrived back at the Temple, Steven and Spinel split off to get ready. Steven went to his room and packed his things, while Spinel ran off to complete her secret errand. They may have been leaving earlier than planned, but this didn't change anything in Stevens mind. He had planned the perfect trip and he was determined to make sure it all went well. He wanted to forget all about what happened with Lars and he wanted Spinel to forget it too.

While Steven was busy stuffing his bag, Pearl and Amethyst came peeking into his room from the top of the stairs. They had heard him come home, but noticed that his mood seemed rather sour. "Steven," Pearl began with a smile, "are you going somewhere?"

The young man flinched a bit, quickly hiding what he currently held in his hands behind his back. "Huh? Oh-well...I told you guys that Spinel and I were gonna go on a trip, right? It's a little sudden, but I wanted to leave sooner than we planned."

Amethyst preemptively placed her hand on Pearls shoulder to keep the svelte Gem from immediately panicking.

"Oh-oh? Is that right," asked Pearl, fooling no one with her nervous smile. "How long will this trip be?"

"Maybe a few days," answered Steven honestly. He had expected Pearl to freak out, but he was pleasantly surprised to see how hard she was trying. "We'll call and check in though, okay?"

That seemed to relieve Pearls anxiety a little, but it didn't calm her completely. Still, she didn't want to drive them further away from her. "Well, don't forget to bring sunscreen and make sure that Spinel doesn't break anything. Oh, and if you two get into any trouble, don't hesitate to call, we'll be there right away! Also, don't let Spinel have too much sugar. Let's not forget what happened at Funland."

Steven sighed a bit, but he smiled at Pearl now. "Don't worry so much. We aren't kids anymore." He knew Pearl saw Spinel and Himself as children. She'd practically raised them both after all.

"So, where are you guys going?" Amethyst asked with a curious grin. She was just happy that this hadn't turned into another argument.

"Actually...I thought I would keep that a secret," he began awkwardly. "You know...given how all of our dates have gone so far..."

Pearls gaze dropped to the floor shamefully. They didn't trust her not to follow them. Not that she blamed them right now. If she did know where they were going, the urge to tag along secretly would be too great. Forcing a smile once again, Pearl anxiously tried to keep herself from asking too much. "Th-that's okay. As long as you call and let us know everything is okay."

Steven and Amethyst both glanced at one another in surprise. Pearl was really making an effort here. Though Amethyst worried Pearl might crack if she kept this up too long.

"I promise we will call you every day," Steven offered happily. Even if he knew Pearl wasn't really okay with this, it meant a lot to him that she was actually taking their words to heart. It made all the difference in his mood right now.

"Call for what?" Asked Spinel as she popped up behind the Gems on the stairs, causing them both to jump in alarm.

"Oh Spinel," Pearl exclaimed as she calmed her startled heart. "Steven was just talking about your trip. ...which you know—o think is a great idea. After all, a trip is always nice and even though I don't know where you're going, I'm totally fine with it. Absolutely fine!" Pearl rambled anxiously.

Spinel couldn't help but notice that Pearls voice kept getting higher as she spoke. Which always meant that she was panicking internally and it was leaking out. However, she knew better than to address it and make things worse. After more than six thousand years with Pearl, she had finally learned not to poke her when she was ready to pop. "Well...good..." replied Spinel cautiously.

Steven blushed a bit, even more aware of what he was hiding behind his back now. "O-okay, why don't you all let me finish packing," he insisted quickly.

Amethyst couldn't help noticing how fidgety Steven had become. She wanted so badly to ask what he was trying to keep out of sight, but unfortunately, her curiosity would have to continue. If she forced him to reveal it and it happened to be some sort of surprise for Spinel, she didn't want to ruin it. The three Gems reluctantly piled down the stairs, leaving Steven alone in his bedroom once again.

Finally, Steven swiftly stuffed the item into his bag and breathed a sigh of relief once it was safely tucked away. It was embarrassing enough just buying something like that, if Pearl and Amethyst had seemed it, he'd never live it down. He was also certain that Pearl would have snapped at once if she caught him trying to pack away a box of condoms.

With his bag packed, Steven carried it downstairs where all the other Gems were waiting now. Pearl was pacing the floor, but at least she wasn't upsetting Spinel, who seemed to be searching the kitchen cupboards for marshmallows.

"So you two are leaving tonight," Garnet commented as Steven reached the bottom of the stairs.

"Ah, yeah. Sorry it's a little sudden, but I...I guess I just figured..." his voice trailed off a bit. The real reason for this abrupt vacation was not a pleasant one and he didn't really want to explain it.

"It's fine. Just have a good time," stated Garnet with a smile.

"Thanks Garnet. Come on, Spinel. Let's get going."

Though she wasn't able to find where Pearl had hidden her sugary treats, Spinel turned to Steven with smile and rushed to his side. "Okay! Bye everybody!"

Saying their goodbyes was easier than they thought it would be. Especially with Pearl. Even if she kept shouting from the porch as they left to remind them to call her. The couple found lion down near the shore and though Steven still wouldn't tell Spinel where they were going, he whispered their destination in the pink feline’s ear. With Steven and Spinel now settled on his back, Lion roared and set off through the portal.

Spinel gasped once she saw where they had ended up. They were now in the middle of a large city, outside the gates of the biggest amusement park she had ever seen. Rose and the others had always avoided crowded places like this and stayed near the temple. They only traveled for missions and even then, it didn't involve places like these.

"Wow! There are so many people!" Spinel exclaimed.

Steven was happy to see that Spinel was excited, but he now realized that traveling by Lion may not have been the best idea. The people walking by were either terrified or taking pictures. He hopped down and offered a hand for Spinel. "Maybe we should hurry and get to our room."

"Our room?" Repeated Spinel, a little confused.

Steven nodded and pointed to the tall building just across the street. The two gave Lion a hug, allowing the beast to go back home. Steven didn’t want him to have to linger around while all these people gawked at him. Now, he took Spinel’s hand and led her towards the hotel. With all the money his dad had forced on him, Steven was able to get a nice room that would finally assure them so privacy for once.

All of this reminded Spinel of the Palace on Home World. The technology was still centuries behind, but everything was so shiny and when they got to their room, it was practically the size of the beach house back home. It was as if they had a whole floor all to themselves. There was even a small pool inside.   
“Oh my gosh! It’s like a small playground!” Spinel exclaimed happily as she ran around the large suite to examine everything.

Steven was glad that Spinel was so excited, but he couldn’t help being nervous. He just couldn’t seem to calm down. Though he had steeled himself for this trip and thought he was mentally prepared, packing those condoms just reminded him of the next step he and Spinel were planning on taking and his heart had been pounding nonstop since they left the house. He wanted everything to be perfect and flow naturally, so it was important that he calmed down, but he wasn’t sure how to do that.

“Steven?” Spinel called out, waving her hand in front of his face with concern. “Do you not like the room?”

“Huh?!” Steven flinched, “Wh-oh, no! I do! I was just…uh…thinking.”

Spinel frowned as she stared up at Steven’s troubled expression. She though that once they got here he would be back to his old self, but clearly he was still upset about what happened earlier today. She had really messed up hadn’t she? Perhaps now was a good time to reveal the surprise that she had prepared.

“Hey, um…could you wait here for a second,” asked Spinel as she turned towards the double doors that led to the bedroom.

Steven was confused and though he wanted to ask why, Spinel had already rushed into the bedroom and shut the doors behind her. “…I need to relax…” he mumbled to himself as he followed after Spinel and knocked on the door. “Spinel, I’m sorry if I made you think—“

Before he could finish, the doors opened, revealing a red faced Spinel as she clutched the heavy blanket from the bed around herself.

“Spinel? What are you—“

“—J-just hold on,” Spinel pleaded bashfully, finding it difficult to look him in the eye. “I know you’re still mad about this morning and I know it’s the reason you didn’t kiss me earlier. So I…did a little research on my own and I asked what I could do to cheer up my boyfriend. There were…a lot of options, but I thought it would be better if you chose what you liked best.”   
Spinel took a deep breath and before she lost her nerve, forced herself to drop the blanket.

As the blanket fell to the ground and crumbled around Spinel’s feet, Steven felt as if someone had knocked the wind out of him. The pigtailed Gem was standing in front of him, wearing only black laced panties and thigh high tights. Steven wasn’t even sure he was breathing as he stared wide eyed at her slender frame.

Spinel took a chance and glanced over at Steven. He hadn’t said a word and she worried that this was the wrong choice. “I-I don’t like wearing things that cover my Gem, so I…decided to leave out that bra thing. ..b-but if you don’t like this one, I can---“

Steven slapped one hand over his eyes and held out the other to stop her from continuing.   
“W-Wait. Just—just give me—I need a second…”

This only worried Spinel further, “It looks weird, right?”

“Not at all,” Steven replied quickly, “You’re beautiful.”

“…but…you won’t look at me…” Spinel began, tugging at her pigtails anxiously. “…is it still because of Lars?” Perhaps it wasn’t just that he couldn’t kiss her, maybe Steven even looked at her differently since what happened.

“No! That has nothing to do with this,” he insisted, lowering his hand and turning his gaze back to the bashful Gem. With all his worry about making this trip perfect, he didn’t realize how pressured this was making Spinel feel. He had to wait a moment before he walked over to her and picked up the blanket, draping it over her shoulders to cover her body. “…I’m so sorry, Spinel. I didn’t mean to make you go this far.”

“Wha? No, I wanted to do this for you,” she insisted, holding the blanket over herself. “I made a mistake and I wanted to fix it.”

Steven shook his head and wrapped his arms around her, hugging the gentle Gem flush against his chest. He was grateful she was covered by the blanket now or he wouldn’t be able to think straight. “But that’s the thing. I don’t want you to think that you have to do things like this because I got a little mad. Don’t get me wrong, I…I like it. I **really** like it,” he admitted with a blush, “but you didn’t do anything wrong and I’m not mad at you. Please don’t misunderstand. I was angry at myself for the way I acted. I was never angry at you.”

“…but then…why didn’t you kiss me?”

“…I’m sorry. I just…I didn’t want to kiss you while I was upset. A kiss between us…should only happen because we love each other, not because I’m jealous. I should have just talked to you about it. I didn’t think it would make you feel like it was because I was upset with **you**.”

Spinel felt like a weight was lifted from her shoulders. She smiled a little and snuggled herself into Steven’s embrace. “You know…it feels a little nice knowing I’m not the only one that doesn’t know what to do…”

“You think I know what I’m doing,” asked Steven incredulously as he pulled back to see her face, his cheeks still completely flushed over her appearance. Even with the blanket covering her, he knew what was waiting beneath it. “…I-I am constantly worried about what to do when we’re alone. I’m still worried that I’m too childish around you and I want to be mature about all this, but even when you’re not dressed like this…all I want to do is touch you and I’m scared that I’ll hurt you or scare by losing control.”

Spinel smiled up at Steven. It really calmed her nerves now that she saw how embarrassed Steven was. She took another breath and slipped the blanket from her shoulders, letting it drop to the floor once more. She witnessed his entire body turn pink and quickly leaned in to hug his chest, listening to the rapid beat of his heart. “I love you,” she began softly. “Everything else aside…I just want to be with you…and make you happy. Dressing like this…was embarrassing, but if you really want me to change, you’ll have to help me take it off.”


	9. The First Night

Steven stared in silence at the wall as Spinel listened to his heartbeat, no longer covered by the blanket. He swallowed hard, wondering if Spinel had really meant what she said. Just in case, he kept his hands at his sides and attempted to calm his nerves. "Sp-spinel? What you just said...are you...are you sure?"

"You're really going to make me say it again?" Spinel sighed, finding that it was embarrassing to stand here dressed like this while Steven stood completely frozen. "...I...I'm sure. I've been waiting for you to...I mean every time we did anything you stopped and I..." her voice trailed off, hiding her face in his shirt now. "...since we're here, you don't have to stop this time, right?" She asked, her voice muffled a bit as she attempted to hide her burning cheeks.

Steven's breath hitched lightly and he cleared his throat, doing his best to keep a clear head. However, Spinel was essentially placing a buffet in front of a starving man. He didn't expect to do any of this on their first night here, but he'd have to be crazy to let this moment slip by. At least a few of his brain cells were still working long enough for Steven to remember the condoms he had brought with him. He wasn't entirely sure how Gem pregnancy worked, but considering the end result was losing Spinel, they really couldn't take the chance.

"O-okay! J-just—-you just wait right here! I just need—-argh, just give me a second!" Steven stammered anxiously, a little annoyed at himself for panicking like this. It wasn't his fault, he wasn't prepared for this to happen so soon. He quickly scooped Spinel up into his arms and carried her to the bed, setting her down gently near the edge before he turned and rushed from the room to get his bag.

He felt like such an idiot. This was why Steven had wanted to wait until he had everything ready. He didn't want to look like he didn't know what he was doing. Not that he did anyway.

Spinel watched from the bed as Steven rummaged through his bag, unsure what he was looking for. She was just glad that the pink glow was fading from his skin. She wasn't sure what he might do to this room if he stayed like that.

When Steven walked back into the room, he placed the box on the end table next to the bed and proceeded to pull off his shirt.

"Wait," Spinel spoke up as Steven was unbuttoning his pants. "Let me do that," she insisted with a blush, scooting herself a little closer to the edge so that she was now sitting in front of Steven as he stood by the bed.

"Wh-you don't have to do that," he replied as Spinel removed the white gloves from her hands. He had never seen her do that before.

"I told you...I did some research on my own," she said softly as she unbuttoned his pants and pulled down the zipper. It was embarrassing, but she didn't want Steven to do everything. She could already feel the heat from his erection before she pulled his pants down a bit, revealing the full length of his erection as it hiked up the fabric of his boxers. "So you did like my choice of clothes?" Spinel teased as she glanced up at an embarrassed Steven.

"Obviously," Steven breathed, leaning forward, placing his hands at Spinels shoulders, and pushing her down onto her back against the bed. He then removed his pants completely before getting onto the bed himself. He grabbed Spinel by the waist and effortlessly lifted her slender frame to make sure she was comfortable, laying her head on the assortment of feathered pillows. Steven loomed over her, placing his hands on the mattress at either side of her body.

Spinel stared up at Steven, thinking once again that he was going to kiss her, but instead, she watched his eyes roam over her body and she suddenly felt very exposed. "Y-you're staring again..." she mumbled bashfully, noting only now how bright the lights in the room were. Shouldn't they be shut off?

"Can't I?" Steven teased, leaning down to brush his lips against the skin of her neck as he brought his right hand over to press his palm over her gem. "You're beautiful."

Spinel inhaled sharply as the heat of his breath tickled her skin, her gem beginning to glow gently beneath his hand. Wasn't he nervous just a moment ago? "You don't have to say those things..." she replied softly, craning her neck a bit to allow him further access.

Steven smirked as he pulled back to see her face before he leaned back down and captured her lips with his own. He was still working hard to keep himself composed. At least to a certain extent. This was going to be their first real night together and he didn't want to hurt her by losing himself and devouring her like a hungry animal. Not that it wasn't extremely tempting. Instead, he thought it best to savor the moment and start slow, hoping to ease her into it.

As their lips brushed together, Spinel fell happily into the rhythm of his kiss, wrapping her arms around his neck to pull him down closer towards her body. Steven answered her silent request by completely positioning himself over her body, shifting his hand down from her Gem to palm the soft flesh of her breast.

A shuddered breath escaped Spinel's lips, the sound muffled as Steven slipped his tongue into her mouth, the kiss quickly becoming more passionate as their tongues danced around one another.

Steven rubbed his palm against Spinel's breast as they kissed, his heart beating rapidly beneath his chest. Though he had been do well so far in controlling himself, he was quickly losing his composure. Nearly every time they kissed, he lost himself in how sweet she tasted and he always wanted more. Tonight, he could taste every inch of her and that thought alone only added to the heat between them.

He broke the kiss for a quick breath, but wasted no time in bringing his lips to her neck, trailing kisses down her skin. He couldn't help himself, running his tongue down along her collar bone until he reached her Gem.

"Ah!" Spinel gasped out in a heated breath as Steven tasted her skin. She'd gotten used to this part, but couldn't help noticing that his hand at left her breast and was sliding down her stomach. Her back arched lightly, unable to protest before Steven slipped his hand beneath the black laced panties that Spinel had worn for him.

"St-Steven, wait...!" Spinel pleaded breathlessly.

"Why?" Steven breathed against her skin, biting down gently at the swell of her breast, forcing a soft moan from Spinel. He loved that sound. Why on earth would he wait to hear more? He ignored he pleas and rubbed his fingers over the already wet folds of her sex.

"Ahn!" Spinel cried out, her body now squirming beneath him as small shocks ran up her spine while he touched her. "S-Steven...!"

Hearing his name leave her lips in such a way, something snapped inside of him. He took his hand from her underwear and sat up. Spinel seemed confused until he began pulling her panties down along her legs and tossed them down to the floor. Spinel blushed terribly, watching as Steven parted her legs, wasting no time before he knelt down, kissing her inner thigh.

He could feel the heat from her waiting sex as he marked the skin of her inner thigh. She smelled so sweet.

"Steven...that's...isn't that dirty?" Spinel asked with labored breaths, finding that it was becoming difficult to think properly the more Steven explored her body.

"Not a single inch of you is dirty," he answered quietly before leaning in and running his tongue slowly along the wet folds of her pussy.

All at once, Spinel felt like her body was going to melt, but she barely had time to breath before Stevens tongue slipped between her folds and began exploring the inside of her. A pleasured shock rushed through her like lightning, forcing her back to arch once more.

Steven grabbed Spinel's hips to keep her body in place as he got his fill of her. He was completely intoxicated at this point. Drunk on the honeyed taste of her body and driven by the alluring sound of her voice that filled his ears. He couldn't stop himself. The more he tasted, the more he just couldn't get enough.

Spinel had grabbed the pillow her head rested on, gripping it tight as her body writhed and trembled, her pussy melting as Steven used his tongue to dominate her. Her voice filled the empty room, no longer caring how embarrassing it sounded. She could feel something building, the pleasure becoming more intense as it threatened to spill over.

"Steven! I-I can't—-" breathlessly, Spinel tried to warn her boyfriend of what was coming, but her body tensed before she could finish speaking. A wave of pleasure rushed through her, her legs trembling as Spinel climaxed with a cry of ecstasy.

Though Spinel thought she hadn't warned him, Steven could tell what was coming and had no complaints as he used his tongue to clean the delectable juices of her climax. When he finally came up for air, Steven stared down at his girlfriend, her chest heaving while she panted for breath.

"Did that feel good?" Steven asked with a smug smile.

Spinel glanced up at him, her cheeks flushed, and her expression glazed over with pleasure. "...y-yes," she answered honestly.

"I hope it didn't tire you out," he continued, leaning over the edge of the bed to grab the condoms he had placed there. "Because I can't let you rest yet."

Finally, Steven removed his boxers, giving Spinel a clear view of his throbbing erection. She flinched lightly, finding that it was bigger than she considered before. She wasn't worried about it before, but now the Gem was concerned it wouldn't fit. Would she have the concentration to stretch herself if she needed to?

By the time Spinel had caught her breath, Steven had finished putting on the condom and repositioned himself between her legs, rubbing the tip of his cock against her wet folds.

Spinel was still terribly sensitive from before. She couldn't help the sweet, shuddered moan that escaped her lips. Her pussy pulsing lightly in anticipation.

Steven was forcing himself to take it slow once again. He didn't want to hurt her. Gently, he pushed his tip inside of her, stopping the moment he felt resistance as her inner walls tightened.

"Are you okay," Steven asked, using all of his self control to keep still. He didn't want to stop, but he refused to disregard Spinel's comfort. He wanted this night to be a pleasant memory for her. Not something she recalled because of the pain.

Spinel met Steven's gaze, seeing a look in his eyes she hadn't before. "I'm fine. ...please...don't stop..." she breathed with a smile.

Steven didn't need any more than that. He pushed the remaining length of his dick into her, gritting his teeth as her inner walls tightened around his shaft. Both Steven and Spinel gasped quietly once he had completely buried himself inside of her. "Spinel, I-I'm going to move," breathed Steven almost apologetically. He wanted to give her time to get used to it, but it felt so good that he couldn't wait any longer. He leaned down, using his hands for leverage as he began to thrust into her, unable to control the strength of it.

Spinels body was pushed up as Steven pounded against the deepest part of her. A sweet shock of pleasure shooting up her spine. Wasn't this supposed to hurt? Why did it feel so good? Perhaps it was only painful for humans? Gems were more durable after all.

"Spinel..." Steven growled in a soft gasp as he thrust into her tight, wet pussy. He could still see the soft glow of her Gem, using that as an indication she was not in pain. In fact, it didn't take long for Spinel to fall into rhythm with his movements. She wrapped her legs around his hips, pushing her own hips up against him as they moved together now.

The bed began to creak beneath them, the room filled with their fevered breaths and pleasured moans. Eventually, Spinel's gasps of pleasure were smothered by Stevens kiss, parting her lips with his tongue to claim her mouth once again.

Steven's cock throbbed painfully inside of her as he pounded roughly into her now. He didn't want this to end, but with each thrust, he could feel the pleasure building, ready to burst at any moment. Still, he wanted more.

Spinel's body was being pushed into the mattress as Steven became a bit more aggressive with his movements. Not that she was complaining. In fact, the harder he thrust his hips, the more pleasure rushed through her. Her legs were trembling as they clung to him, Spinel finally breaking the kiss in order to speak. "Steven! Steven...it's happening again...!" Spinel moaned between breaths.

Steven buried his face against the crook of her neck, taking note of Spinel's warning as he gripped the sheets. The moment her body tensed again, her inner walls clenched around his shaft and forced a climax from Steven's throbbing member. Spinel held tight to Steven as she felt her second orgasm rush through her and Steven bit down on her shoulder, grunting breathlessly as he was finally able to relieve himself.

The couple panted for breath, Spinel bringing her legs back down onto the bed, but keeping her arms around his shoulders to hug him close. She wanted to see his face, but was embarrassed for him to eventually see hers. What kind of expression did she have right now?

"...Spinel," Steven began, pulling back loom over her body once again. He looked down at her and was awestruck by how stunning she was. Her cheeks were flushed, her pigtails had nearly come undone, and eyes reflected pure joy. He wanted to remember this look on her face forever. "...I love you," he whispered happily.

Once again, Spinel felt her cheeks burn while Steven stared at her, but she couldn't help the smile that laced her lips. Bringing her hand up to stroke his cheek, Spinel almost felt like crying. "I love you too. ...so much..."

Steven leaned his cheek against her palm and placed his hand over hers. "Are you tired?"

Spinel shook her head in reply, "not at all. Why?"

With a blush, Steven pulled out of Spinel and sat up to remove the condom that had caught his load. Clearing his throat, he tossed the used condom into the waste basket and leaned over to grab another one from the box.

Spinel was confused at first, but when she glanced down, she felt her cheeks burn once again. Steven's erection hadn't gone away at all. Though she would be too embarrassed to admit it, Spinel was actually glad that this night wasn't going to end here.

"I'm just not sure we'll get much rest tonight," Steven began as he ripped open the second condom wrapper, "but since you don't really need sleep...I guess I shouldn't feel too guilty."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sooooooo...they finally took the plunge. I still tried to keep it pretty tame, but there will be more scenes like this throughout the story. So...hopefully no one had a problem with this, cause it's only just begun. Again, still tried to keep it tame. At least I think I did an okay job at that.


	10. I'm Yours, You're Mine

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Some people seemed alarmed by the last chapters contents, so I will warn you, this chapter contains explicit sex content.

The morning light peeked through the window of the hotel suite, gleaming down onto Steven's face and forcing his eyes open. Though Steven wasn't sure what time it was, he was sure it was too soon to be awake. Concentrating for a moment, Steven shape shifted his right arm, stretching it out to reach the button that controlled the blinds. Once they were down far enough to block the sun from the bed, he brought his arm back and sighed happily. Even if he had been woken earlier than he would have liked, Steven couldn't keep the smile from his face. Especially when he turned on his side to see Spinel sleeping peacefully beside him. His smile widened as he reached over and brushed a bit of hair from her face.

Her pigtails had long since come undone, so her hair was a bit messy, but she looked so charming like this. Everything that happened last night replayed in his head and while his cheeks burned, he couldn't keep the smile from his face. After making love for the first time, they didn't stop until both were completely exhausted. Admittedly, Steven worried he might have gone a little overboard as he looked over the marks he had made along Spinel’s neck and shoulders. The marks even trailed down to the swell of her breast, and though the blanket covered her from there, he knew there were more. He just couldn't get enough of her last night and honestly, he didn't think it would ever be enough, but that was just fine with him.

Though he didn't want to disturb Spinel, Steven had an overwhelming urge to wrap his arms around her. Gently, he slipped one arm under her back and slowly pulled her close to rest in his embrace. She only stirred for a moment, before falling swiftly back into a blissful slumber.

As he held her slender frame against his chest, Steven felt so happy that he was certain his heart would burst at any moment. Yesterday didn't go as he had planned at all, but he couldn't care less anymore. There wasn't a single thing that could spoil his mood now. After months of feeling that everything was trying to keep them apart, Steven finally felt like he could just be in love with her without worry.

"...Steven...?" Spinel mumbled drowsily as she opened her eyes.

"Ah-I'm sorry," Steven began in a hushed voice. "I didn't mean to wake you."

"You didn't..." Spinel replied with a tired smile, snuggling herself even further into his embrace. She could feel his heartbeat against her cheek and her gem began to glow. This sound was the most precious thing on earth to her. Nothing could make her happier. Why couldn't she wake to this sweet sound every day?

"How are you feeling," Steven asked, genuinely concerned that he may have overdone it last night.

Spinel blushed; secretly glad that he couldn't see her face. "Just...a little sore," she admitted quietly. The more she remembered about last night, the more Spinel never wanted Steven to let her go. As long as she stayed in his embrace, he wouldn't see how red her face had surely become.

"Sorry about that," Steven replied with an apologetic smile. "I...couldn't help myself. But to be fair, I don't remember you complaining at the time. In fact, I recall several pleas from you to keep going."

A small, embarrassed squeak escaped Spinel’s lips as she buried her face against his chest even further. Y-you don't have to remind me..." she whimpered.

"You don't...regret it, do you?"

With a short gasp, Spinel pushed against his chest to face him seriously. "Of course not," she insisted, almost offended by the question. "I was so happy last night. I'm still happy. Aren't you happy?"

"I've never been happier," replied Steven with a broad smile, even more elated to know that Spinel wasn't rethinking her choice last night.

"Does this mean I'm really yours now?" Asked Spinel.

"You know that you're your own Gem," Steven began as he sat up in bed, "but if you want to be mine...than I'll meet you halfway and be yours too. Belonging to each other isn't a bad deal, right?"

Spinel giggled lightly, not the least bit surprised by his answer. Steven was always so sweet. She grabbed the blanket and held it to cover her chest once she sat up as well. "As long as you're mine," she agreed cheerfully.

Now that she felt more awake, Spinel caught sight of the marks Steven had made down towards her chest. She blushed once again and quickly lifted the blanket to examine the rest of her body. The pink Gem gasped lightly, noting the marks along her inner thighs and hips. "Steven!" She exclaimed in a flustered groan.

"Sorry," he replied quickly, not wanting to upset her, but secretly proud of each one. "Want me to heal them?" Steven teased, leaning over to plant gentle kisses against her shoulder.

"W-we don't want Pearl to get mad again," Spinel replied as a shiver ran up her back while Steven kissed her skin.

"Hmmm...How about we don't mention Pearl in bed?" Steven hummed against her skin, gently brushing her hair out of the way with his hand so he could plant a kiss at the nape of her neck.

Spinel's breath hitched quietly, a little surprised that Steven was being so affectionate. After last night, she assumed he would be exhausted. Though, speaking of last night, there was something she meant to ask Steven. "I didn't have time to ask last night, but what were those things you kept putting on?"

"You mean the condoms," asked Steven, his lips brushing against her skin as he spoke. "Those are something I have to wear to make sure you don't get pregnant. I don't want to take any chances."

Her face reddened at once. Pregnant? Like Rose had been with Steven? That meant that she might have Steven’s child one day? "So-so you have to wear those...every time?"

"Just to be safe," he replied, pulling Spinel into his lap so they could get more comfortable.

Spinel was a bit alarmed to be taken from the cover of the blankets, now settled completely bare in Steven's lap. She could already feel his dick growing against her ass, forcing Spinel to release a soft, shuddered breath. "How many of those did you bring?"

"Definitely not enough," whispered Steven as he ran his tongue along the side of her neck and slid his left hand down her stomach until he reached her slit, running his fingers slowly over her folds.

Spinel tensed lightly, feeling that familiar heat from last night wash over her, causing her breath to quicken as Steven pulled her even closer, her back flush against his chest. His hardening member was rubbing firmly against the plump flesh of her ass and Spinel could feel the warmth of Steven's fevered breaths at the back of her neck.

Honestly, Steven had intended to let Spinel rest after last night, but he just couldn't help himself. He justified it by reminding himself that Gems hardly needed rest anyway. "You're already wet," teased Steven as he kissed her shoulder, slipping two fingers into her slicked folds.

"Hahn," gasped Spinel, nearly bringing her hand to cover her mouth before Steven used his own free hand to stop her from doing so.

"I like hearing your voice," he reminded Spinel. A big part of what he loved about last night was hearing Spinel say his name in such a prurient way.

Spinel felt like she was going crazy. It was just like last night. She was embarrassed and surprised by just how much she liked having Steven toy with her body. Of course she was already wet; it didn't seem to take much more than his voice to send sweet shivers down her spine. The soft light of her Gem indicated just how happy she was in this moment, which Steven took as his green light for 'anything goes.'

Letting out a small gasp of surprise when Steven began fingering her more vigorously, the wet sounds of her sex slicking from his hand as he pleased her. "St-Steven...!" Spinel exclaimed in a lustful moan, her back arching and pushing her ass to grind gently against his now fully erect cock.

Stars, did he love hearing that, so much so that he had nearly forgotten about the condoms. In the heat of the moment, Steven reached his free hand to her front, massaging her breast in his palm while Spinel writhed in his lap. His dick throbbed against her ass with each move she made and Steven found that he couldn't hold back any further. "Lay forward," he breathed, helping to guide her body down, even as his fingers continued to thrust into her, forcing more and more of her juices to slip against his hand.

"Ah—hn! Steven! ...d-" Spinel found that it was difficult to get a proper word out, especially when her body had been moved. Her chest was now pressed against the blankets with her ass up in the air, giving Steven a clear view of her glistening pink folds once he pulled his fingers out and got to his knees. "W-don't stop," she pleaded breathlessly, feeling a terrible ache when he took his fingers from inside of her.

"As if I could," replied Steven, gripping her ass with his hands, his fingers dimpling into her soft flesh as he leaned forward to run his tongue over her wet sex, slowly lapping up the sweet taste of her.

Spinel gripped the blanket beneath her, trying to keep her hips still as Steven ran his warm tongue over her sex, but unable to keep herself quiet. While her fevered moans began to fill the room, another sound came into play, startling Spinel a bit.

It was Steven's cellphone. It had begun to ring from the bag that lay beside the bed and with just a glance, Spinel could see that it was Connie who was attempting to get a hold of Steven. However, Steven didn't seem to hear it, or perhaps was actively ignoring the sound while he indulged himself with Spinel.

"St-Steven...the phone," breathed Spinel, wondering if Steven would stop once he saw who it was.

Steven kissed the supple flesh of Spinel's ass before he pulled away and straightened his back, rubbing his now aching cock at her entrance slowly. "Do you really want me to answer it?" Steven asked through haggard breath, reaching for the nightstand to grab yet another condom, just grateful that he didn’t use them all last night. He had to thank the stars for even remembering to do so.

"It's Connie," answered Spinel, as if testing him. Though she knew there was little point in being jealous anymore, she couldn't help it. Connie was the one Steven loved first. He'd touched her first. He kissed her first. She hated thinking about it even now.

Steven only paused for a second after slipping on the condom, mostly just surprised that Spinel would announce that, as if expecting him to stop and answer the phone. Did she really think he had the willpower to take a break right now? "I thought we just went over this," he began, pushing his tip slowly between her folds and into her waiting pussy. "Who do **I** belong to?" He asked before gripping her ass tight and ramming the remaining length of his dick into her.

Spinel's whole body was nearly pushed forward and her inner walls tightened around his shaft as her hips tensed, "AHH! M-ME!" The pink Gem gasped out in reply.

"And who do **you** belong to?" He purred, refusing to move until he heard her answer, though it required great restraint on his part since she was gripping him so tightly.

Spinel wriggled her ass bit, horribly disappointed that he had stopped just as he began. "Y-you," she answered, as if pleading for him to continue.

"Who?" Asked Steven once again, reaching forward with one hand to cup her breast and pull her back up, his dick throbbing inside of her as her back pressed against his chest once more, his other hand snaking down her stomach once again. Only stopping when his fingers reached her clit, rubbing the small nub in slow circles.

"Y-you! I belong to—-to you!" Spinel cried out, her whole body trembling. She turned her head and reached back to place her hand at the back of his head, forcing Steven to meet her lips.

Finally satisfied with her answer, Steven allowed himself to move, pushing up into her as she parted his lips with her tongue. He was more certain than ever before that he could never get enough of this. She was gripping him so tightly that he could hardly pull his member back to ram up into her again. While Spinel’s moans melted into the kiss, their tongues trying to dominate the other, she moved her hips in rhythm with his own. Once again, she felt as though she were losing her mind. The phone was ringing again, but it sounded so distant now as they indulged in one another. The bed was once again creaking beneath them, their heated pants for breath filling the room, drowning all other sound out.

"Spinel...!" Steven grunted feverishly, quickening his pace and moving his lips to hungrily taste her neck. Her juices had slicked his shaft well enough that sliding in and out of her was pure bliss. Each time he moved, he could feel her inner walls pulsing tight against his shaft, as if eager to squeeze everything he had out to fill her up.

Just as Steven relished in hearing his name from her lips, so did Spinel enjoy hearing her own name from him like this. "Sa-say it again..." she pleaded breathlessly, feeling the sweet sensation of pleasure building more and more with each move they made together.

"Spinel..." breathed Steven in lustful obedience, ramming his hips up even harder into her. This forced Spinel to wrap her legs around his waist, stretching them back to keep her body in place.

She no longer cared what lewd sounds came from her body; her mind had gone blank. She whimpered at the back of her throat as Steven groaned against her shoulder with a few more hurried pumps. Each of them feeling the sweet urgency of a coming climax crashing down, their bodies tensing together as if in perfect synch. With one last, rough thrust, his hands holding down her hips, as he released his seed with a shuddered breath. Coupled with Spinel’s orgasm, her inner walls tightening around his shaft and squeezing what he had left into the condom.

The two took a few labored breaths before falling back onto the bed.   
“How many of those condoms do we have left now…?” Spinel asked, hugging Steven’s arm as she snuggled up against him to catch her breath.

Steven took the used condom off and tossed it into the waste basket beside the bed.   
“I’m not sure, but we really need more,” he breathed with a blissful, yet tired smile. “After we rest a bit, would you like to go and see the city? I wanted to take you to see the amusement park.”

“That sounds like fun,” replied Spinel with a delighted smile. They hadn’t been away from beach city long, but she already felt as if a huge weight was lifted from them. No one was trying to lecture them, no one was following them, and they were far away from anyone that might make either of them jealous. This trip was the perfect plan. “Thank you…for planning this for us…” Spinel whispered happily.

Turning a bit, he kissed Spinel’s forehead lightly, “anything to make you happy.”

Just as Spinel opened her mouth to reply, the phone began to ring again. Spinel stretched out her arm to reach for Steven’s bag and felt around until she finally grasped the vibrating phone. Sitting up now, she brought her arm back to herself and stared down at the screen. It was Connie calling again. Why was she so adamant about getting a hold of Steven right now?

“Who is it?” Steven asked with a sigh, half expecting Spinel to simply hand him the phone or answer it herself. However, instead of answering him, the white of Spinel’s eyes became black and she crushed the phone in her hand. In alarm, Steven quickly sat himself up, staring at the broken phone in her closed hand. “…Spinel? Why did you—“

“—you said you’d do anything to make me happy,” she replied with a pleasant smile, her eyes still dark.


	11. Trusting Sodalite

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Once again, I want to thank you all for your comments! I’m so glad everyone is enjoying the story so far! Thank you for the support! <3

Back at Beach City, a construction worker was already speaking with Lars about repairing the floor and counters of his shop after Steven's outburst. Luckily, Steven's father had paid for the construction, but Lars still didn't much like closing up shop for the next few days. If Steven hadn't left so suddenly, he could have just healed it easily, right? Though, Lars wondered if he would have bothered after what he did to Spinel.

That kiss still plagued him. He wasn't sure why he did it and he didn't know how to explain it. He had absolutely no romantic feelings for Spinel. If anything, he found her to be a little much at times. Besides, she was Steven's girlfriend. Even if he ever developed feelings for Spinel, he would never do something like that to his friends.

As Lars thought on all this, he felt a familiar gentle tug at the back of his shirt. Looking over his shoulder, he was greeted with a nervous glance from Sodalite.

"Morning," he greeted, turning back to look at his store. "I told you the store would be closed for the next few days, didn't I?"

Sodalite nodded her head without a word, but tightened her grip on Lars' shirt. She did wonder if he thought of her as a bother. After all, he often urged her to stay in little homeworld and try to handle being around the other Gems. Surely because he didn't like her hanging on him all the time. However, around Lars was the only place that she felt comfortable.

The silence was broken when one of the workers began breaking apart the broken tile with a sludge hammer, startling Sodalite immediately. With a quick, "EEP," Sodalite hid her face in Lars' back and the area around them went completely dark, alarming everyone, especially the workers who were now suddenly blind.

"It was just a hammer. Just a loud noise," Lars said aloud, making sure to keep still so that Sodalite wouldn't panic when he moved.

"...just a noise..." repeated Sodalite slowly, doing her best to take a long, even breath. Though the darkness faded away, the freckled Gem did not loosen her grip on Lars' back, still hiding her face in the fabric of his shirt.

The pink young man could feel Sodalite trembling as she hid herself behind him. The Rutile Twins had pointed it out before, but Lars was surprisingly very patient with Sodalite. Sure, he didn't care for the constant blackouts every time she heard a cat run by or his phone ring, but somehow he just couldn't bring himself to be angry with her. Instead, he wanted to help her. "I'm going to the Temple. Do you want to come with me? I'm just going to meet Mr. Universe there to give him these receipts."

Sodalite nodded her head silently before stepping back a little, allowing Lars to turn around. The Gem quickly hugged his arm once he faced her, which Lars had also become accustomed to by how. Though, he couldn't help feeling embarrassed when she did this. Mostly due to the fact that this Gem was rather well endowed in the chest and when she hugged his arm so close, he could feel the soft mounds pressing against his arm. Clearing his throat and trying to think of anything else, Lars began walking with Sodalite towards the beach.

"The fusion...she will be angry I came with you?" asked Sodalite as they walked along.

"Garnet. Remember? Her name is Garnet. Just like Rhodonite," instructed Lars.

"Right. ...Garnet." Sodalite repeated again. She was still not used to all these new rules.

Though they walked in silence, it wasn't uncomfortable. Though it did give Lars a chance to think a few things over once again. Without warning, he stopped his stride just as they reached the beach.

"Sodalite, why did you lie to Steven before? ...you know that you didn't make me see anything. Yet you—"

"—-You were in trouble," answered Sodalite quickly as she tightened her hold on his arm and lowered her head. "I've seen what my Diamond can do when she gets angry. ...you could've been shattered."

"Steven wouldn't have seriously hurt me. He's a good kid. Frankly...after what I did...I would've been pretty pissed off too." Lars admitted. "I just...still don't understand why I did it..."

"It wasn't your fault! It was that Gem! The scary one. She-she did something..."

"Sodalite..." Lars began with a sigh, "I keep telling you. She's loud and can be a little...annoying sometimes, but Spinel isn't a bad Gem. She's just...emotional."

Sodalite released Lars' arm and with great effort, forced herself to stand in front of him, as if standing her ground. "Y-you can't see it...but I can. Something...is darker inside of her. It's—-it's as if Spinels Gem is covered by something...awful! It's...frightening. It feels cold...and suffocating. I've felt it...ever since My Steven healed me." Though Sodalite tried to speak with confidence, her voice was just as shaky as her hands while they gripped at her own clothes.

Lars stared in wide eyed shock at the freckled Gem in front of him. Not nearly as shocked by her words as he was by her actions. Even though she was clearly trembling, her silver eyes were locked with his gaze. She usually had trouble keeping eye contact, but obviously, this was important enough that she powered through it. How could he dismiss her words now? "...Sodalite, if—-"

"Please believe me," she pleaded now, lowering her gaze down to stare at her feet. "I know you have no reason to trust what I say, but I promise you, something terrible is inside that Gem. It's dangerous. I don't want you to get hurt! You're a human, you're soft and far more brittle than—-"

"Hey," Lars interrupted, waving his hand in front of Sodalite's face. "I trust you, okay? So calm down."

"You do?" Sodalite asked in mild disbelief, lifting her head to stare up at Lars with surprise.

"Well...yeah," answered Lars as he rubbed the back of his neck. Sodalite was so often staring at the ground that it always caught him off guard when she met his eyes. "Why don't we talk to the Gems about all this? That way, they can look into it."

Sodalite really thought she'd have to work hard to convince Lars. She certainly didn't expect him to support her so readily. Since she was pretty paranoid about everything, no one tended to take her seriously. Though she didn't care to speak with other Gems, if Lars was willing to help her, Sodalite would do her best to be confident. "...o-okay! Let's...go and tell the others."

Lars smiled as he observed Sodalite's attempt to appear brave. It was like watching a squirrel trying to work up the courage to face a bear. He still wasn't sure what was happening exactly, but if it had anything to do with his mistake with Spinel, he wanted an explanation. However it wasn't long after Sodalite agreed to speak with the Gems that Lars felt a sharp pain his chest. With a quick gasp for breath, the pink young man dropped to his knees, his body suddenly heated to the point of burning and his limbs weak.

"LARS!" Sodalite shouted in alarm, quickly dropping to her hands and feet, confused and concerned by his sudden fall. "What's wrong?!"

Even if Lars knew how to answer her, he couldn't reply. In fact, he felt he could barely breath. He was rapidly becoming dizzy and couldn't seem to focus his eyes. Though he could hear Sodalite calling out for him, her voice seemed to be drifting farther and farther away.

"Don't worry," whispered a young woman's voice cheerfully. "This is just part of the fun."

His eyes were heavy and his breathing had turned ragged. Lars did his best to stay awake and find the source of the woman's voice, but it seemed nearly impossible as his vision blurred. Sodalite's image slowly faded out as he finally lost consciousness, the faint echo of playful laughter echoing in his ear before everything went dark.

Sodalite was now in tears, frantically shaking the unconscious young man. "L-Lars! Wake up!" cried the blue Gem, unsure how best to help him. She knew next to nothing about humans.

Luckily for Sodalite, they were close enough to the temple that Greg had spotted them on his way back from the Big Donut. He had initially planned to greet them cheerfully until he saw situation unfold.

"Holy cow, what's going on?!" exclaimed Mr. Universe as he darted the rest of the way to them, dropping several donuts in the process.

"Mr. Steven..." began Sodalite, overwhelming relieved that someone, especially another human had showed up. Surely he could help Lars much better than she could. "Lars suddenly stopped working. I think he's broken! You have to fix him!" pleaded Sodalite in tears.

"Oh man," mumbled Greg under his breath, feeling horribly unprepared for something like this. "Just-just hang on. I'll get my van and we'll take him to a hospital, okay? Or better yet, the Gems are close by. We should—-"

Sodalite was suddenly reminded how close they were to the temple. The Crystal Gems had been on this planet for thousands of years. They would be able to help humans too, wouldn't they? With that in mind, Sodalite scooped Lars into her arms and got to her feet, wasting no time as she turned on her heel to race for the temple.

Greg was a little surprised at how fast she was. He'd never seen her run before. Still, she had dashed off without him. "H-hey hold up! I'm coming too!" he called out before scrambling after them.


	12. Let Me Help You

Sodalite ran Lars to the Beach house, with Greg following frantically behind. 

“My Steven!!” Sodalite shouted as she ran up the stairs. “Please help!”

“Sodalite? What on earth—-?” Pearl exclaimed as she swung open the door to keep the blue Gem from crashing through it. She’d heard her yelling, but only just arrived in time to let her inside.

“Where is My Steven?! Lars has broken!”

Greg panted for breath once he finally caught up with them. “St—Steven isn’t here,” wheezed Mr. Universe. “I was...I was trying to tell you!”

“B-but someone has to fix him!! He—he stopped working,” pleaded Sodalite desperately.

“I-okay, just calm down. Lars is a human. He needs to go to a human hospital,” explained Pearl as evenly as possible.

“I’ll get the van,” Greg panted, turning to rush out the door.

Though Pearl did assume a human hospital would be best, she was a little concerned that they might not be able to help. Lars had been healed by Steven after all. “...Sodalite, what happened?”

The skittish Gem shook her head hysterically, tears trickling from her cheeks down to the floor. “I-I don’t know! He-he just stopped working! I didn’t know what to do! I-I don’t know enough about humans to help him! I-I’m scared...”

“I know everything scares you, but Lars will—“

“No! This isn’t the same,” insisted Sodalite, making sure to keep her eyes on the ground. If she looked at Pearl she would would see the black smoke around her and get anxious on top of all this. “I-I’m scared that he’s broken for good. He is always helping me, yet I can do nothing for him even now.”

“...well this kind of fear is understandable,” replied Pearl. It was one she’d certainly felt many times. Feeling frightened and helpless to help the people you loved. “...I’ll call Steven and when he and Spinel return—-“

“—-Don’t let her near him!!” Sodalite pleaded in a panic. “Sh-she’ll only make things worse!”

Though Pearl was taken aback by Sodalite’s words, she would hardly have time to address them before Lars’ eyes shot open without warning.

“Lars!” Sodalite exclaimed happily at first, but the relieved smile she was forming quickly faded once she saw that the whites of his eyes had been blacked out.

“Sodalite, stand back!” Pearl shouted, pushing off on her heel at once to separate the two, forcing Sodalite to release Lars.

“W-Wait! He’s still—“ Sodalite tried to protest, but it soon became clear that Lars no longer needed any help.

The pink human was standing on his own now, but his movements seemed almost robotic as he adjusted himself, staring at the Gems with a twisted smile and empty eyes.

“Let’s play a game,” suggested Lars, his voice mixed with another’s. A woman from the faint sound of it.

Swiftly summoning her spear, Pearl stepped in front of Sodalite and stood her ground. “What have you done to Lars? I demand that you release the human!”

“Demand?” Repeated Lars with an almost amused smile. “I just want to play a game with you. Come on, I’ll even let you choose.”

Sodalite wasn’t quite sure what was happening. This clearly wasn’t the Lars that she knew and from the all the black smoke that surrounded Pearl now, she could see that the Gem was getting anxious.

“L-Lars,” began Sodalite cautiously, “...what...what do you mean?”

“It’s a game,” he repeated, “I think it’s going to be lots of fun. At least until it’s over.”

“Oh? And what happens if we don’t play your game?” asked Pearl defiantly.

“Well that wouldn’t be any fun, but you shouldn’t decide anything until you’ve heard the rules. You see, this game has a time limit. If you can last before the time runs out, you win. The timer, is this young mans heart.” He pointed out, placing a hand at his chest. “I can’t stay inside this body too long. I’m stretched too thin, but his blood pumps much slower than an average human. So my poison won’t reach his heart right away. Until then, we’re going to play. If you can last until his heart gives out, you win!”

The Gems were horrified. Whatever held Lars captive was surely out of its mind. Using his body as some timer for a game. No matter how they thought on it, win or lose, Lars would die anyway.

“You can’t do this!!” Sodalite shouted, her attempt to step forward thwarted by Pearl who blocked her way.

Lars shrugged his shoulders and his empty eyes fixed on Pearl. “Why don’t we start with a game of tag?” He asked shortly before launching himself at the Gems, much faster than the average human.

Pearl readied herself, but in her panic, Sodalite shoved the thin Gem to the ground, barely dodging Lars’ attack, forcing him to slam his now blackened hand against the kitchen table, breaking it into pieces.

“What are you doing?!” Pearl demanded in a huff as she pushed Sodalite aside and got to her feet.

“You can’t hurt him!”

“I’ll do the best I can, but something is inside of him! If we can’t find a way to get it out, he’s going to hurt us. We have to defend ourselves.”

“He’s a human! If you fight him, you’ll break him!”

Pearl didn’t have time to argue anymore since Lars was coming after them again. Both of his hands had turned dark as if rotting away somehow. Pearl swung her spear to swipe at his feet, but Lars jumped into the air to avoid the blade and lunged after Sodalite.

Pearl turned on her heel and swiftly twirled her weapon back around, shooting the light from its blade in an attempt to stun the human before he reached the blue Gem. When the light hit his side, it burned his skin and he cried out, the woman’s voice inside of him screeching in pain.

“STOP!!!” Sodalite screamed in a panic as she watched Lars double back and hold his side, his pink skin turning black where the light had hit him. Finally, it was too much for the nervous Gem and all light was ripped from the room, leaving all three in complete darkness as she shouted once again, “STOP IT!!!”

Without missing a beat, Pearls gem flashed a light to help her see, searching in the dark frantically for Lars. The human was nowhere to be found and what’s more, she couldn’t seem to locate Sodalite. “Sodalite! Bring the light back! Hurry!”

Waiting anxiously in the dark for just a moment, Pearl was relieved when the darkness returned to Sodalite’s body. The freckled Gem was holding her head at both sides, her eyes closed tight as she painted for breath.

Lars was lying on the floor, his hands and wound no longer black, but badly burned. Pearl wasn’t sure what had happened, but at least he was unconscious and wouldn’t cause any more trouble for the moment. Pearl rushed over to check on him just as Garnet warped into the house.

“Garnet! I need some help over here!” Pearl exclaimed.

Garnet wasted no time in dashing over to the scene, kneeling down to examine the human and the frantic Gem. “What happened?” She asked at once.

“I-I took it!” Sodalite choked out as quickly as she could. “So do-don’t hurt him anymore!”

“Took what?” Pearl and Garnet asked together, both equally lost. However, it didn’t take long for Pearl to connect the dots once she thought about it. Sodalite’s ability allowed her to take in negative emotion and purify it inside of herself. Perhaps she was able to take in whatever had been controlling Lars. However, could she purify such a poison? What would happen now that it was inside of her if she couldn’t?

While the other Gems were trying to figure out the situation back home, Steven had a problem of his own. Back at the Hotel, Steven sat on the bed, staring at the crushed phone in Spinels hand. “Spinel?” began Steven cautiously, “why did you...?”

Spinel seemed calm at first, but when she saw the concern on Steven’s face, her smiled faded at once. She tossed the broken device to the floor and leaned over to cup his face in her hands. “I don’t like it when others try to speak with you while you’re with me,” whispered Spinel. “It makes me very unhappy.”

“Are you...are you feeling okay?” Asked Steven now, unable to shake this feeling of dread as he looked into her changed eyes.

“Was the phone that important to you? You didn’t seem to care about speaking with others while you were touching me.”

Steven brought his hands up and gently pulled Spinels own hands down from his face. “Spinel, you don’t sound like yourself. ...and your eyes...”

“What’s the matter?” Spinel asked, confused and upset now. “I don’t understand. You said...you loved me. That you’d do anything to make me happy.”

“I do love you,” he insisted while gripping her hands tight, “but something is wrong. I think we should get you back home so Peridot can take a look at you. At least before something bad happens. I don’t want you to pass out again.”

Spinel smiled, “you’re sweet to worry, but I feel fine. For once...I have you all to myself. As long as you stay with me, I’ll be happy.”

Steven wasn’t sure what to do now. The conversation was going in circles and Spinel refused to acknowledge the change that had clearly overcome her. Glancing down at her Gem, he could see the black color start to fade in once again. Releasing her hands, Steven slipped from the bed and proceeded to locate his clothes. “Spinel, we’re going home.” he insisted while putting on his pants.

Sitting on the bed alone, Spinel watched Steven with a blank stare. “I don’t want to go home. I want to stay with you.”

“I’ll be there the entire time, but you need to get looked at by Peridot or something. I just want to make sure you’re okay,” insisted Steven once again.

“NO!” Spinel screeched, a growl in her throat as she stretched out her hand, wrapping her fingers tight around Steven’s neck. “Nothing is wrong with me! Why don’t you like me like this?!?!”

Steven’s breath was almost immediately cut off, quickly taking in a hoarse breath as Spinels fingers pressed down to grip around his throat. “Sp—-!!?”

Suddenly, Spinel gasped and her arm went limp, letting it lay loose at Stevens feet while the young man took a few desperate breaths. Tears began to slip from Spinels eyes as she stared in silent shock at the bruising already beginning to color Steven’s skin. She didn’t remember doing it, but by the time she realized what was happening, her hand was around his neck. She was hurting him. “St-Steven...” whimpered Spinel pathetically.

“It-it’s fine,” he choked out before licking his hand and placing it against the bruising. “S-see?! I’m fine!” Steven exclaimed with a forced smile once the pain had vanished. “Let’s just get home so we can find out what’s going on.”

The moment Steven stepped forward towards the bed, Spinel panicked and extended her arms once again to stop him. “STAY AWAY!!”

Steven stumbled back just a little, unable to determine the right thing to do. Spinel now had her hands over her gem, muttering to herself in a desperate panic as tears flooded down her cheeks.

“Spinel, let me help you! Let’s go home.” He tried again, but this time making no attempt to get to her. Instead, he held out his hand, silently pleading with his lover to come to him.

Spinel stopped whispering to herself, turning her head to glance at Steven. “...I didn’t mean it...”

“I-I know...” Steven replied, just trying to keep her calm. Something was terribly wrong. He had to get her home where they could get some help. “So come home with me.”

“We can’t go home—we can’t—I can’t! I’ll—-I’ll hurt you! I’m-I can’t think-!” Spinel cried out, feeling completely unhinged. It was as if something inside of her was screaming, pulling her down into that horrible dark mass that threatened to consume her before.

“Spinel...please...” pleaded Steven, nearly in tears as he watched Spinel panic.

Suddenly, Spinel went silent and stared down at the sheets as if she had just realized something. Her Gem began to glow and she pulled out one of Pearls swords that she had stored there.

“Spinel?” began Steven, his heart jumping in his chest when he saw the blade.

“I’m sorry, Steven. ...but I’ll fix this! You have to bubble me!” Spinel exclaimed before quickly thrusting the sword through her stomach, twisting the blade for good measure to make sure it did the job she intended.

All breath left Steven’s lungs as he watched his lover plunge a sword into herself. He barely had a moment to register what was happening before she turned to a cloud of smoke before his eyes, leaving nothing but the Heart shaped Gem behind on the bed. The pink color of her Gem was still struggling to shine through the darkness that attempted to cover it. Without thinking, Steven dashed forward and bubbled Spinel as she’d asked, holding the bubble in his hands without a word. He didn’t know what was happening. His mind was a jumbled mess as he stared down at Spinels Gem. Why was this happening? Who was doing this? Someone was clearly targeting Spinel for some reason and whoever it was, Steven was not going to let it slide. Bitter tears dropped against the bubble he’d made, his his body slowly glowing pink as his anger continued to grow. Someone was responsible for this and he was going to make them pay for it.


	13. Regrouping

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the wait you guys. My Laptop is taking a dirt nap and now I have to write everything on my phone. Not fun.

It had been at least an hour since Sodalite absorbed whatever was inside of Lars. The blue Gem had been doubled over in pain the entire time, doing her best to purify the strange element. The other Gems were at a loss for how to help her. Pearl stayed by her side with a bowl of Roses Fountain water just in case they needed it, while Garnet and Greg were watching over Lars and trying to figure out what to do. They had determined that calling the other off colors was out of the question since they didn't know if he might wake up and attack everyone again. For now, they just had to wait until he woke up.

"H-how is Lars?" Sodalite asked through ragged breaths, her shoulders trembling as she worked to keep the dark element inside of her as if it was trying to escape.

"He's sleeping now. The fever he had has gone down. Don't worry," insisted Pearl as she knelt down beside Sodalite. She glanced up at Garnet, "any luck in contacting Steven?"

"It keeps going to voicemail. He must have turned off his phone to spend time with Spinel," answered Greg as he was greeted by Steven's voicemail message yet again.

Sodalite shook her head rapidly, "you-you can't let Spinel come back! She's the one that—AGH!" A small crack chipped at Sodalite's Gem on her right shoulder, causing the light in the room to go on and off, her eyes turning completely black, just as they had when she was broken once before.

"Oh my—" Pearl exclaimed in a panic, cupping some of the fountain water in her hands and splashing it over Sodalite's Gem. Luckily, the crack smoothed over and the Blue Gems form returned to normal. Pearl exhaled heavily in relief. Lately, Roses water hadn't been working and she worried it would be useless here as well. Once healed, Sodalite caught a second wind and finally felt like the purification was working. For a full hour, the freckled Gem felt like something was clawing at her insides, screaming and scratching at the surface of her Gem in a desperate effort to get out. It took nearly everything she had to force this dark element from leaving her and eventually purifying it into nothing. Panting for breath, Sodalite caught herself on her hands to keep from collapsing completely, exhausted now that it was over.

"Is it done?" Garnet asked, making her way over to the drained Gem.

Too weak to reply, Sodalite simply nodded her head as best she could. Easing the tension in the room just a little. Yet another weight was lifted from them all once they heard Lars begin to stir, as if on cue to the purification.

Pearl could see that Sodalite wanted to move once Lars started to wake up, but she placed her hands on the Gems shoulders to stop her. "You need to relax a moment," insisted Pearl, pouring more fountain water onto Sodalite's Gem, hoping it would help her regain some strength.

"...fuck...what hit me...?" Lars groaned painfully as he sat up slowly, placing his hand over his head.

"Pearl," answered Garnet simply. "How are you feeling?"

Lars was immediately confused. Pearl hit him? His hands ached and his side was burning. The last thing he remembered was walking with Sodalite and a woman's voice before everything went dark. Suddenly, he panicked, which only made the pain at his side worse, "agh—!" He gasped through gritted teeth as he straightened his back. "Wh-where's Sodalite?! She was with me earlier." Lars was of course worried about his injuries, but if he fainted in front of Sodalite, she was probably freaking out or crying somewhere alone. Hopefully she didn't run off to get help. She wouldn't be able to talk to anyone and just end up getting lost.

"Sodalite is over there. She brought you here," said Garnet as she pointed to the physically drained Gem at the other side of the room.

Once again, Lars was confused. What exactly happened while he was passed out? His body hurt all over and Sodalite brought him to the Crystal Gems on her own? And why did she look so weak? "H-hey, whoa! What happened to her?!"

"That...is a good question." Garnet sighed. She was not accustomed to being so lost, but hopefully they could all put some pieces together and figure out what was going on.

With Garnets help, Lars got to his feet and though his side was on fire, he sat himself down next to Sodalite.

Now that Lars was beside her, Sodalite finally felt at ease. Without saying a word, Sodalite laid her head in his lap and closed her eyes to get some rest. Though Lars was immediately embarrassed, Sodalite paid no mind to where they were. She was put cold the moment her head hit his lap.

"...Sodalite was trying to say something about Spinel." Pearl began as she glanced at Lars.

It was only then that Lars recalled the reason Sodalite was eager to see the Gems. "Right. She said that there was something inside of her. Something dark and dangerous. She was going to talk with you all about it...before any of this happened."

Pearl and Garnet exchanged a look of concern. If Spinel had something inside of her like Lars did earlier, it might not have been safe for her and Steven to be alone. "We need to go and get them," insisted Pearl. "We can get *Lion to take us—"

The door burst open before Pearl could finish and they all turned in surprise to see Steven in his pink diamond form, panting for breath as he held a bubble in his hand with Spinels Gem inside.

"Steven!" The Gems exclaimed together as they rushed to the door.

"What happened?! Did you run all the way back here?!" Asked Pearl in a panic, noticing Spinels gem right away and fighting the urge to take it from him.

"S-somethings wrong," he breathed out, "Spinel isn't-she poofed herself!" There was no way he'd mention the choking incident. He didn't want them to keep her in the bubble out of fear.

"Poofed herself?" Pearl repeated. "Why would she do something like that?"

Steven looked down at the bubble in his hand, "I'm not sure exactly. I think...she was scared she might...hurt someone."

"Someone like you?" Garnet asked knowingly.

Steven flinched a bit, but only held the bubble closer to his chest. "...she'd never hurt me." He lied. He didn't feel good about it, but he couldn't shake the anxious feeling that if he told the truth, he wouldn't see Spinel for a long while.

"Wake up Sodalite," ordered Garnet simply.

"Sodalite?" Repeated Steven in surprise. Only now noticing that Lars and Sodalite were even there. "Why?"

"There was something strange inside of Lars. Sodalite was able to use her power to take it into herself and purify it. Perhaps she can do the same for Spinel." Garnet explained with a tired sigh. She had no idea what was happening or how this might play out. It made her anxious and she didn't enjoy the unknown.

"Whoa! Wait a sec," Lars interjected, "can't you see that she's exhausted? It looks like helping me took everything she had."

Though Steven was growing impatient and wanting to see Spinel as soon as possible, he couldn't deny that Sodalite looked spent. At least for now, Spinel was safely resting inside her Gem. They could at least wait until Sodalite got more rest. "...let's give Sodalite more time to recoup a bit. We still don't really know what's going on. So...let's just-we need to think about this and compare notes."

Lars was a bit apprehensive now. From what he was hearing, it sounded as if they planned to make Sodalite fix everything. Would she even be able to? Because she was always frightened of nearly everything, Lars couldn't help seeing her as rather fragile. He looked down at the Gem in his lap and sighed. "...just stay asleep for a while..." he mumbled softly.

It didn't take long for everyone to catch up on the events of the past few hours. Though Steven omitted the attempted strangling, he did inform the others that Spinel was acting strange before she poofed herself. He sat himself down on the couch, holding the bubble close to his chest. He was sure that Spinel couldn't hear him while she was in there, but he knew she liked the sound of his heartbeat. It made him feel better to think that she could hear it and maybe it was helping her.

"...so what do we do?" asked Pearl in concern. "If something is inside of Spinel...how can we...?"

"We need more answers first," answered Garnet. "Sodalite was the one who said she thought something dark was inside of Spinel. We need to know how she determined that."

"Why is everything up to Sodalite all of a sudden?" Lars asked irritably, still allowing the blue Gem to rest her head against his lap. "I bet there are other options."

"We're not going to force Sodalite to do anything," assured Pearl. "It's just, if the same thing that controlled you is inside of Spinel, Sodalite has already proven that she can not only force it out, but destroy it within herself."

"Are we even sure that she got it all? Lars looks okay, but whatever controlled him may still be in there." Garnet pointed out. "I'm going to get Peridot so she can examine Lars and Spinel. Nobody do anything until I get back with her."

The others nodded their heads, watching silently as Garnet left via warp pad to collect Peridot. No one knew what any of this meant. What had been controlling Lars? Was it the same thing inside of Spinel, or perhaps she carried something entirely different? If they released her from the bubble, would Spinel be the same when she reformed?


	14. Fight or Flight

Peridot returned with Garnet and began setting up a few machines in the living room right away. Some were meant for Lars, while the others were meant for Spinels Gem. Luckily for Lars, even when he had to move Sodalite, she didn't stir at all.

Steven had gone to his bedroom for some peace and quiet while Lars was being checked out. Pearl tried to convince Steven that he shouldn't be holding the bubble, but he didn't want to put it down. Sitting at the edge of his bed, all he could do was stare somberly at the bubble in his hands.

The Half Gem felt emotionally drained. One of his happiest memories with Spinel was immediately followed by something horrible. Why was it always Spinel that had to suffer?

While Steven was taking some time to himself, Lars was being inspected by a Gem with very little bedside manner. Peridot had removed his shirt rather roughly and even while Lars protested, she poked and pinched his skin to note the initial reaction.

"Wouldj'a quit it!?" Exclaimed Lars in a bashful huff.

"Oh don't be so sensitive," Peridot replied simply, staring closely at the side where Pearls light had struck him. "Hmmmm...this should have done a lot more damage. Perhaps you're more durable than before?"

"I have no idea, but it still hurts like hell. Can't I get some of that weird healing water?"

"Negative," answered Peridot. "I need to inspect all the burns and wounds first. Also-"

"What are you doing?!" Shouted Sodalite from across the room.

Lars and Peridot turned to see the Blue Gem rushing over, pushing herself between them with her arms held out to shield Lars. "G-get away!"

"Hey, I'm doing a check up here!" Peridot insisted.

"It's fine," Lars began, placing his hand at the top of Sodalite's head. "She's not hurting me."

Sodalite still looked apprehensive, but she backed down slowly, stepping to the side and taking his arm. "...you're...okay?"

"I'm okay," he nodded. Though he suddenly realized he was shirtless and started to internally panic. "Um-but uh, don't you need to rest some more?"

Sodalite squeezed his arm close to her chest, "I want to stay here with you. Can't I?" she pleaded.

Lars was honestly afraid to move. His bare arm being clung against the Gems soft chest. He sat perfectly still and averted his gaze from her pleading eyes. "F-fine! But just-you have to sit down!"

A bright smile laced Sodalite's face and she released his arm with a quick nod. Doing as she was told, the freckled Gem grabbed a chair and placed it beside Peridots work station before sitting herself down.

Sodalite watched as Peridot ran several tests on Lars. When she finally appeared done with him, she called the other Gems over to her. Lars was just happy to get away from her. She had been rather rough with him and it was made worse with Sodalite watching so intently. He didn't want to look weak in front of her, so he had to simply suck it up while Peridot manhandled him.

"Are you still hurt anywhere? Did Pearl damage you too severely? Are they certain that I got all the poison from your-" Sodalite had begun to frantically drown Lars with questions as he slipped his shirt back on, but before she could finish, Lars pressed his finger to her lips.

"Stop. I said I'm fine," sighed Lars. He knew she was worried, but at the risk of worrying her further, he leaned in to whisper while the other Gems talked seriously at the other end of the room. "Look, I'm sure they'll ask you to help with Spinel...but don't let them put you in danger, okay? ...I mean, don't push yourself just because you feel like you have to."

Sodalite was quiet for a moment before she nodded her head quietly. So this meant that the others wanted her to purify Spinel? She didn't much care for the idea. The poison inside of Lars was a small amount and it nearly ended her. However, she still saw Steven as a Diamond. If he were to request it of her, how could she refuse?

While Peridot huddled close with the Gems to discuss their options, Steven was still sulking up in his room. He was laying on his back with Spinels bubble sitting over his heart. Staring up at the ceiling, Steven tried hard to think of what could have gone wrong. If this was someone else's doing, how was he supposed to find them? Why would they make Lars attack the others? Why would they target Spinel in the first place?

"Spinel...I don't know what to do..." he whispered into the air.

"Steven," Peridot began as she slowly entered his room. "Are you ready for us to look at Spinel?"

"...was there anything strange about Lars?" Asked Steven without responding to her initial question.

Peridot shook her head, "there was nothing strange inside of him. Sodalite must have gotten it all. Whatever it was. ...I would have liked a sample or something to look at actually," she admitted. "Maybe we will get more answers when we try and see Spinels Gem."

"...this isn't corruption. ...it's not like anything we've seen before. What does that mean for Spinel?"

"...have...we considered that this was something...already inside Spinel?" Peridot suggested carefully.

"What?! You mean like, she's the one causing all this?" Asked Steven, becoming defensive at once as he sat up straight.

"W-well, when we consider how she changed back then...what if her Gem has been corrupted in a different way? What if—"

"—-is that what you think?! That she's just broken beyond repair?!" Steven demanded, getting to his feet now.

Peridot regretted voicing her theory, but it was something they had to be prepared for. No Gem had ever changed the way Spinel did. "She might have created this poison within her Gem by accident...it could be warping her mind!" Shouted Peridot as bravely as she could, determined to make Steven face the facts no matter how upset he got.

Steven felt a lump form in his throat and a quick sense of anxiety washed over him. "...so then...can't Sodalite just purify it? I mean, if that's-"

"We have to take a look at Spinel first...and get a sample of the poison..." answered Peridot.

"A sample..." he repeated. "How would you get a sample?"

Peridot wrung her hands nervously, "we...would have to crack her Gem. Just a little."

"WHAT?! YOU'RE NOT CRACKING HER!" Steven insisted, his body glowing pink as he held the bubble protectively in his hands.

Suddenly, Pearl and Garnet came running up the stairs, as if waiting for their cue to join the conversation. "Steven, calm down," urged Garnet before standing in front of Peridot.

"I'm not going to let her—" Steven tried.

"—-I know it sounds terrible," Pearl chimed in. "I was against it too, but Steven...if Spinel really is corrupted in some new way, we have to do something to figure it out. We have to fix her! This could even mean she might go back to the way she used to be."

It was clear to Steven that they had discussed this already. They must have known he wouldn't agree to it, but he was surprised they got Pearl on board. "No," Steven shook his head, "you keep saying she's broken, but she's not! I thought we went over this! Cracking her? That's too extreme."

"You know we would never hurt Spinel. We just need to see if we can help her. Give us the bubble Steven. Everything will be okay." Garnet spoke as softly as she could, holding out her hand for the bubble.

"I-I can't," replied Steven shakily. "There has to be some other way to figure this out. What if you accidentally shatter her? What if her Gem is weakened by the poison or whatever this thing is?"

"We are going to take every precaution we can," offered Peridot.

"NO!" Steven shouted again, a pink wave of light bursting from him and knocking everyone off their feet, allowing Steven an opening to run by them and down the stairs.

With all the shouting, Sodalite and Lars were already on alert, watching anxiously as Steven rushed down into the main room with Spinels bubble.

"Steven, what's going on?" Lars asked in confusion. The Gems had barely gone up there and then all they heard was shouting.

"Sodalite, you have to help Spinel," began Steven in a panic. "Do what you did with Lars and take whatever's inside of her out!"

Lars shook his head, "Whoa-Wait a sec, Steven. Is that what the others said? Did they find out what it was?"

"Who cares what it is! Just take it out and get rid of it."

With a small bow, Sodalite held her breath and nodded her head. "Y-yes My Steven," she answered quietly.

Lars flared up and grabbed Sodalite's shoulders to force her back up. "Don't do that! You don't have to kill yourself just because he says so!"

"That's not what I'm asking her to do! I'm not ordering her to do anything, but she's the only one that can help Spinel right now," Steven insisted, looking over his shoulder to make sure no one was coming down the stairs. He felt crazy. Hurting the others so they wouldn't get her Gem, asking Sodalite to do something dangerous, the fear that Spinel might change, it felt like he was being backed into a corner and couldn't get out. He was her boyfriend, he had to protect her. It was starting to feel like he was the only one on her side.

"I'm not against helping Spinel, but shouldn't we figure out what this is before we make Sodalite take in any more of it," implored Lars, still keeping his grip on Sodalite's shoulders to make sure she didn't do anything stupid.

However, as Lars and Steven went back and forth, Sodalite could see a horrible dark mass forming around Steven. His fear and anxiety was growing fast and if it crept any further, Sodalite was afraid it might consume him. "Stop..." she muttered under her breath, her shoulders beginning to tremble.

"See?! You're scaring her!" Lars pointed out.

"STOP IT!" Sodalite screamed, closing her eyes and covering her ears as darkness covered them all.

Lars couldn't see anything, but he felt Sodalite rip away from his hands and he heard footsteps. "Wh-what's going on? Sodalite?! Steven?!"

It wasn't long after he called out into the void that the light returned. Though it did nothing to help his panic when he saw that Steven and Sodalite were no longer in the room.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Writing these on my phone has been a pain! 
> 
> Anyway, I do want to thank everyone for sticking with the story and the comments! Also, I hope everyone is staying healthy and sane!


	15. Sodalite’s Decision and Spinels Return

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for the kind words and support for my family. You’ve all been very considerate and patient. I hope everyone is staying safe and healthy. 
> 
> I always look forward to your comments!

Steven was still surrounded by darkness, but someone had taken his hand when the lights went out. It was too small to be Lars, so Steven had to assume it was Sodalite. After all, who else could see anything in this void?

"Sodalite?" He asked, unsteadily being pulled along in the dark, worried that he could hit a wall or trip over something at any moment and damage Spinels Gem somehow.

"I'm sorry! I-I didn't know what else to do!" Sodalite shouted back, still running as if something was chasing them. She couldn't handle the fighting and the growing dark fog that was starting to surround Steven.

"Stop!" Steven shouted back, not quite realizing just how obedient Sodalite was. She stopped cold the moment he said it and he nearly smashed against her back. After they had finally stopped, Steven looked around, still seeing nothing at all. "Can you...control this? Or...?"

"Oh-oh, r-right!" She gasped lightly, bringing the dark back into herself and revealing where they had ended up. They were rather far from the house actually. Having gone to the hillside by the lighthouse.

"...how...did we get here so fast? I didn't even feel us leave the house..."

"When I move through the dark...it never feels like anything. I just keep running until I feel...safe." Sodalite replied, not quite sure how it worked herself. It was most likely a trick of the mind, but she couldn't be sure. It only happened when she panicked and so she was never thinking straight.

Steven sighed and sat himself down on the grass. Regardless of how they got here, he was relieved all the same. It was so tense inside the house and they weren't getting anywhere by arguing. "...well...thanks..."

Sodalite smiled and nodded her head a bit, sitting herself down in front of him, "I-I just wanted to help, My Steven..."

"You don't have to keep calling me that. It's just Steven. ...I'm not your Diamond."

"...but...calling you by name alone would be rude..." she insisted while nervously placing her hands behind her back. He didn't like being saluted, so she had to resist the reflex.

With another sigh, Steven decided to give up for now. He didn't have the patience to change her mind at the moment. "What we were talking about at the house..." he began instead, "...do you think you can do it? Can you help Spinel? I mean...I'm not ordering you to do it. I'm asking...if it's something you think you'd be able to do...safely."

Sodalite wasn't sure how to answer that. If it had been an order, the answer was easy. An order would have made this simpler. Having options made her anxious and the future uncertain. "W-well...I...I don't know. When I...take in a feeling, I can see it clearly and absorb it. With this...we can all see it...so it's something a bit more physical. It took over Lars not like a feeling would, but as another person. ...and inside Lars...it was only a small piece of something. Inside Spinel...is much larger."

"Are you saying...it's not Spinel? It's a separate thing?"

"...I can't be completely sure. I'm sorry..."

Steven shook his head, "it's fine," he sighed. "I just...need to think and I'm not going back there any time soon. Not if they're gonna take her from me..."

Sodalite stared blankly at Spinels Gem. She knew that Spinel was special to Steven, but she still didn't understand the romantic aspect of his feelings for her. Lars had tried to explain love to Sodalite before, but for some reason he got flustered and gave up. "You love this Gem?" She asked quietly, staring even closer at the heart shaped stone.

Stevens cheeks flushed lightly, but he nodded his head. "I do."

"Why?" Sodalite asked at once, genuinely curious.

"Eh? Um..." Steven was a little taken aback by the question. Not that he couldn't answer, it just seemed rather sudden in this situation. "W-well...she's been around my whole life. ...I mean...when I was younger she was just a friend until pretty recently. I guess you could say we kinda grew up together. ...but um, Spinel has always been there to cheer me up, even when she was upset herself. Even if she doesn't know someone, she'll make an effort to see them smile. She tries her best at everything she does and is always optimistic about it working out, even when it's clearly going to fail."

"But isn't that just what a Spinel does?"

"I mean, I guess you could say that, but it's not just the happy stuff that made me fall in love with her. It's the way she hates fighting, but will always defend her friends. The way she needs to be babied but still insists that she doesn't need any help. The look on her face when she listens to my heartbeat...or how she gets embarrassed and hides behind her pigtails..."

Sodalite listened silently, still unclear how this worked. Wasn't that just being fond of someone? Maybe it was exclusive to Steven because he was half human? Without a word, Sodalite sat in front of Steven and leaned her head in to press her cheek against his chest.

Steven froze at once, "uh-what are you doing?"

"Listening to your heart," answered Sodalite simply. "Isn't that the organ that controls love? I thought perhaps that Spinel listened to it and understood something about love that way."

"I-I really don't think that's why she does it. The sound just...seems to calm her down and makes her happy..." Steven tried to explain, feeling a little awkward with Sodalite's face pressed up against his chest.

The freckled Gem listened carefully, not hearing anything significant or helpful. It was just a series of small thumps that seemed to speed up the longer she sat there. She finally sat up straight and sighed in defeat. "...it's just a constant rhythm. ...I didn't hear anything that would help me understand what love is."

Steven smiled, quite relieved that Sodalite had given up. "Well, it means something to Spinel because she loves me. What if you tried listening to..." Stevens voice trailed off, only remembering now that Lars didn't have a normal heartbeat anymore. "...uh...maybe you can find something about Lars that you find soothing?"

"Lars?"

"Yeah," Steven answered with a smile. Finding that this was a nice distraction to the terrible things that had happened lately. He really didn't want to think about what they might have to do in order to fix it. "What do you like about Lars?"

Sodalite thought for a moment, "he's kind...and thoughtful...and always makes sure nothing will scare me when we walk into a room. He's very patient with me...even when I know it's causing him trouble. He never gets mad at me when I break something or cause street accidents..."

"Street accidents?" Steven repeated, "how many have you caused?"

"...a few, but Lars just grabs me and runs away when that happens."

"What?! But that's—-" Steven stopped and sighed, "never mind, I get it. But, do you get it now? Lars does all those things because he cares about you. Didn't you take in that poison because you care about him?"

"So...I love Lars like you love Spinel?"

"Um-that might be a little far. I just mean that you clearly care about Lars very much. Whether it's love or not, he's someone you'd do anything for, like you did with the poison. ...and I'd do anything to keep Spinel with me..."

"I see..." Sodalite began, "...that must be why it hurts you so much..."

"What?"

"I can feel a little of what you feel when we're close. It's painful. ...it must hurt you to keep Spinel in that bubble..."

Usually Steven was the empathetic Gem. It was kinda nice to have another around. Not that he was happy Sodalite had to feel this pain in his chest. "Yeah," he admitted, staring down at the bubble in his arms.

Sodalite felt another tight squeeze in her chest as Steven glanced down at Spinel. She still didn't quite understand what love was, but she knew how desperate she had been to help Lars and keep him safe. Steven just wanted to do the same for Spinel. It was still frightening and she wasn't even sure that her power would be enough, but it was only right that she did what she could. "I-I'll try and fix Spinel."

Steven smiled, even if he still felt guilty for asking Sodalite to do something so dangerous. He was truly grateful that she was willing to try. He just couldn't bring himself to let the others try and crack Spinel. This was surely the better option. "...thanks Sodal—what are you doing now?"

Before Steven could finish expressing his gratitude, Sodalite had leaned back in to hear his heart once more. "I thought it might sound different when you're happy," she answered simply.

Letting out a defeated sigh, Steven decided to wait until Sodalite was satisfied with her little experiment. She had just agreed to something rather risky after all. However, as Sodalite listened to his heart, annoyed that it didn't seem to sound any different to her, she saw a circle of light form just beside them. "AH!" She screamed quickly, wrapping her arms around Stevens waist and closing her eyes tight.

Though Steven readied himself for an attack, once he saw the light, he recognized it right away as a portal. It was further confirmed when Lion jumped through with Lars and Pearl on his back.

"There you are! How could you just run off like that?! You have no idea how worried we all were!" Pearl exclaimed in anger.

Even if it was only Pearl, Sodalite was still frightened and tightened her grip on Steven, refusing to open her eyes. "I-I'm sorry! I-I didn't—!"

"Hold on, I told you not to yell at her," Lars insisted as he jumped off Lions back with Pearl.

"I'm not yelling at either of them, I'm scolding both of them. There's a difference," huffed Pearl.

"Yeah? Well Sodalite's not your kid," snapped Lars. "She only ran off because she thinks Steven is still her Diamond."

"No, she ran off with Steven because she panicked like she always does and—"

"—will you two knock it off?" Steven interjected, honestly a little surprised to see them bickering like that. "She doesn't like all the fighting..."

Lars flinched a bit, looking down at Sodalite as she clung to Steven. He didn't exactly like the scene in front of him, but he had to remind himself that portaling here on the back of a large pink Lion probably frightened her and there was no one else to hide behind. Besides, he was pretty confident in the fact that now that he was here, she wouldn't be stuck to Steven long. "Sodalite, no ones fighting anymore. It's okay."

The freckled Gem opened her eyes cautiously, her chest feeling much lighter when she saw Lars there. She quickly released Steven and leapt up to hug Lars by the arm, still hiding herself a bit from Pearl. A Gem she was still quite wary of. Especially after she kept trying to blast Lars earlier.

"Steven...you really shouldn't have run off like that. Neither of you should have. Whatever's inside Spinel could still be dangerous. You two shouldn't have been alone." Pearl explained, still a bit upset over the whole thing.

"We're both just fine," answered Steven as he got to his feet. "...in fact, Sodalite has agreed to try and help Spinel like she helped Lars."

This information didn't seem to hit Lars very well. "What?! Did you order her to help?!"

"He didn't!" Sodalite exclaimed quickly. "I-I offered! My Steven told me I didn't have to do anything...but I-I honestly want to try."

"Why?! You're scared of Spinel and they said you nearly broke your Gem trying to help me! I know this is a crappy situation, but we don't have all the options yet. You can't possibly be the only one that can help, there's bound to be other things we can try." Lars insisted.

Sodalite shook her head. This could end up just like it was back at the beach house, with everyone arguing in circles. "I-I can do it. It will just be...maybe I can do it a little at a time. I just want to try."

"Please Lars..." Steven began, knowing this was probably difficult for him. He obviously worried for Sodalite and he would do the same if Spinel were in her place, but he just couldn't stand leaving Spinel like this. "...We'll be as safe as we can. Spinel just needs help...and I'm powerless to do anything for her..."

Lars glanced at Pearl, but it was obvious that the slender Gem wanted Sodalite to give it a try as well. "...whatever, it's not my decision to make anyway." Lars grumbled.

"I'll be okay," Sodalite reassured, a bit more confidence in her voice now. "I love Lars, so I'll be careful."

Lars took in a sharp breath and immediately froze in place, his heart nearly jumping out of his chest due to the sudden shock. "Y-you—-what did—-you can't just say—-" stumbling on his words in an embarrassed frenzy, Lars was having trouble forming a coherent thought while his his cheeks began to burn.

"Am I wrong? My Steven said that I loved Lars." Sodalite thought aloud, worried after seeing Lars' reaction.

"What are you teaching her?!" Lars demanded, his face flushed. Even more embarrassed now that he knew Sodalite just didn't understand what she was saying.

"I-I didn't say that! We were just talking about-you know, the people we care about!" Steven replied awkwardly.

"Perhaps we can discuss Sodalite's education later on?" Suggested Pearl. "We need to get everyone back to the temple so we can do this in a safe environment. Away from any humans that might get hurt."

"I-I can't go without Lars," insisted Sodalite, ducking a bit when Pearl glanced her way.

Pearl wanted to argue that Lars had already been in danger once, but if they wanted Sodalite to keep calm, having Lars around was the best option. "Fine, I just want to get through this with as little damage to anyone else as possible. Come on Ste—-"

The moment Steven began to take a step forward, the bubble he held started to vibrate and a heat radiated from it that burned his palm. "Agh, what's going on?!" Exclaimed Steven with a wince, though still unwilling to let the bubble go.

"Steven! Drop it!" Pearl pleaded, rushing to his side in order to push it away or take it from him.

However, she didn't get the chance to do either of those things. The bubble popped in Stevens hands and though he made an attempt to snatch up Spinels Gem before it hit the ground, it was unnecessary. The heart shaped Gem emitted a bright glow and slowly lifted into the air while everyone watched anxiously.

Spinel had poofed herself. Why would she come back willingly? Steven could only hope that this was good news. Maybe retreating into her Gem allowed her to fix the problem on her own. As Spinel reformed, everyone was shocked to find that she had come back not in a new form, but completely naked, her hair down and ruffled up as if she had just woken up.

"Spinel!" Steven called out, quickly removing his shirt so that Spinel had something to cover herself.

"Why would she come back like that?!" Pearl exclaimed, pulling a blanket from her Gem and rushing towards Spinel as well.

To Stevens dismay, when he knelt down in front of Spinel to slip his shirt over her, he could see that the whites of her eyes were still dark. Just as they were when she tried to strangle him. What's more, she looked confused after coming back. "Spinel?" Steven tried quietly, blocking Pearl from seeing her eyes just yet.

"Steven? ...Steven!" Spinel exclaimed, leaping forward to wrap her arms around him. "I'm so sorry!"

Pearl wasn't sure what was happening, but she throw the blanket over Spinel to help cover the rest of her. "Are you okay, Spinel?" Asked Pearl in concern. "How's your Gem? Oh wait, we'll check that later. Speaking of which, why did you come back...naked...?"

Steven gasped and turned to check on Lars and Sodalite. He had completely forgotten about them and now he worried that Lars had seen too much. Though he was relieved to find that Sodalite had placed her hands over Lars' eyes from behind. His cheeks were still a bit flushed however, so he probably caught a glimpse of something.

"Good job, Sodalite," smiled Steven with a thumbs up in her direction.

Sodalite smiled back and removed her hands from Lars' face to salute Steven, "thank you, My Steven."

"Yeah, good job," Lars muttered irately. Not annoyed that he didn't get to keep looking, but annoyed that everyone kept treating him like he was after Spinel somehow. When honestly, she often aggravated him.

"Sodalite's here?" Spinel asked, pulling away from Steven to look around. The last thing she remembered was being in the hotel room with Steven. Now they appeared to be back in Beach City with Pearl, Lion, Lars and Sodalite.

"You and I should have a talk in private," replied Steven, pulling her back into his arms, just wanting to hold her for a little while longer while keeping Pearl from seeing her face. "I'll explain a few things then."


	16. Hostage

Once the initial shock had worn off a bit, Steven was in the uncomfortable position of trying to hide Spinels face from Pearl and the others. He held the pink Gem close to his chest on the guise that he had missed her. Though it was true enough, he worried more about what would happen if Pearl saw the darkness in Spinels eyes or the black fog that colored her Gem.

"Steven, let's get Spinel home. We can examine her there," suggested Pearl, feeling quite relieved to have Spinel back. Even if she came back in such an odd state. She would have insisted on seeing Spinels Gem right away, but it wouldn't have been decent.

"O-or...couldn't Sodalite take a look at Spinel now?" Asked Steven in return, hoping that at the very least she might be able to return Spinels appearance to normal. He didn't want the others to think Spinel was defective, like when they said her Gem turned upside down.

"Now?" Repeated Lars and Pearl in unison.

"Don't you think that we should do this in a safer place?" Asked Pearl, becoming a tad suspicious of how Steven was holding Spinel now.

"Why would it be safer at home? If Sodalite feels like she's in trouble, I can heal her. Moms water worked on her Gem didn't it? So my healing will work this time. At least for Sodalite. If she and I work together, there shouldn't be a problem." Steven insisted, honestly surprised with how quiet Spinel was being through all this. Surely she was still confused.

"...Steven..." Pearl began, worried that he was hiding something from her. "...let me see check on her for a moment? Before we have Sodalite do anything..."

"Pearl...I don't want-"

The slender Gem knelt down and reached over to place her hands on Stevens shoulders. "...I know...that you two might see me as the bad guy right now, but do you really believe that I would let anything bad happen to Spinel?"

"...well...no." Admitted Steven quietly.

Pearls eyes glistened with tears, but she smiled all the same, "...Your mother...tasked me with looking after Spinel more than six thousand years ago. It was my job to teach her how to behave and to watch out for her. ...I may not have handled the change in your relationship well...but...you're not the only one that loves Spinel..."

Steven heard Spinel whimper a bit and he could feel her shoulders tremble slightly. Perhaps Spinel was feeling the same as him. Listening to Pearl, Steven couldn't help feeling guilty. They faced so much resistance to their relationship at first that it started to feel like everyone was against them. Just when did he stop trusting her and thinking he was the only one that wanted to help Spinel?

Without saying a word, Steven loosened his hold on Spinel, allowing her to pull away from him a bit. Sure enough, tears were slipping down her cheeks. "...sorry," Steven began, leaning in to kiss her forehead as he wiped her cheeks with his thumbs. After becoming her boyfriend, Steven kept thinking it was his job to protect Spinel from anything that would make her sad, but he nearly made that mistake himself. Pearl was a very special existence to Spinel...and if he kept going on thinking they were in this alone, it could have really damaged that.

Finally, Spinel pulled back from Steven and turned to Pearl. Of course, the Slender Gem was rather shocked when she saw the darkness in Spinels eyes, but mostly it just worried her. "...oh Spinel..." Pearl sniffed, choking back a sob. "...don't worry, we'll find out what's going on. We can fix this..." insisted Pearl as she wrapped her arms around Spinel tight.

Lars and Sodalite watched quietly from the side while the others had their moment. However, when Lars started to feel a tight squeeze on his arm, he glanced down at Sodalite.

"What's wrong?" He asked quietly when he noticed the terrified look in her eyes. Perhaps it was because the others were feeling so much right now. Maybe it was too much for Sodalite being so close.

"...thank you, Pearl..." Spinel whispered as she returned her friends embrace.

Pearl smiled bashfully, "w-well...you grew on me," she joked with a sigh.

Sodalite began to shake now, holding onto Lars' arm with trembling hands. She heard him speak, but it was muffled under the sounds in her head. It was similar to when she had been broken. She could hear crying, screaming, angry shouting, and what's worse, she could feel it. That horrible pressure that threatened to crush her, it was all flooding back. "...St-Stop..." she whispered under her breath.

Lars didn't hear what she said, but it was clear that Sodalite was not well. Something was wrong. "Steven, I think all this emotion is getting to Sodalite. Until she's ready to see Spinel, I think we should take a walk."

Steven nodded his head, but before Lars could take a step forward, Sodalite lifted her head and cried out with a shaking voice, "get away from Spinel!"

Everyone was alarmed by her shouting, but as if on cue with her warning, Pearl was lifted into the air with outstretched arms and quickly whipped back to the ground like a rag doll. She barely had to respond before it happened and everyone else was frozen in place.

"...you know...I thought you would be nicer to me..." Spinel began, her voice cheerful, but the look in her eye was cold as she stood and turned to look at Sodalite. "I even kept you alive and showed you the way..."

Steven was in shock. Pearl was a bit unsteady, but she got to her feet and wiped the dust from her eyes to pull her spear from her Gem. Lars had been controlled and made to attack them before. Was it the same with Spinel?

Spinel twisted her waist to spin around and look at everyone's faces. "Oh no...everyone looks a little strange now. ...but you know...I really don't need the rest of you."

"Wh-what is going on, Spinel?!" Steven asked, completely lost for what to do next.

Spinels face lit up when Steven spoke, "it's okay, Steven. I only need you to love me. These other people are just in the way."

"Sodalite! Try to purify Spinel, NOW!" Pearl ordered urgently.

Sodalite flinched and though she tried to concentrate, the sounds in her head were making it difficult to do so. Not to mention the panic over the sudden turn of events. "I-I—"

Lars ripped his arm from Sodalite and placed himself in front of her, grabbing her shoulders to force her attention. "You're okay!" He exclaimed, knowing full well that when she panicked, it was hard to get through to her. "Don't look at the Gems, just look at me!"

With a sharp gasp, Sodalite felt like time stopped for a moment when Lars' voice cut through the agony in her head. She focused her terror filled eyes on him and the dark fog that was building up around the Gems became less frightening. Suddenly, she remembered what Steven asked her before. If there was something about Lars that calmed her. Only now, in the middle of the panic, she realized what it was. Just like when he first stumbled upon her in the dark. In that unending void she couldn't control, the darkness that engulfed every Gem who came close, he was the only one who seemed to shine despite it all.

Maybe he was afraid, maybe he was panicked in that moment, but she couldn't feel it. His light wasn't snuffed out by all the dark that surrounded her. His voice was able to reach her in that vast empty space. She knew now what made Lars special to her, what it was about him that calmed her, Lars was like her light.

The blue Gem started to smile as her panic eased, but it didn't last long. Before her eyes, Spinel had outstretched her arms and wrapped them around Lars, pulling him towards herself.

"LARS!" Sodalite screamed, reaching out for him in vain.

"Spinel! Stop this!" Steven pleaded as Pearl made it to his side. "Whatever is wrong with you, Sodalite can fix it!"

"You don't love me like this?!" The pink Gem screeched, her arms coiling around Lars like a snake, causing him to wince in pain the tighter her hold became.

"PLEASE," Sodalite screamed, still too scared to move. The dark fog was spreading fast and around Spinel it felt so dense that Sodalite was afraid to get near. Why was it so concentrated around Spinel? Why did it feel so familiar?

"I'm fine!" Lars shouted, "don't—-mmmph!"

Spinel coiled more of her arm around Lars, wrapping around his neck and his mouth to muzzle him. "Shut up," Spinel stated with a cold stare. "You were useless as a puppet and I don't like toys I can't play with anymore."

Steven was already at his wits end. The girl he loved had somehow become unhinged. She was hurting Lars. She hurt Pearl. How was he supposed to fix this? How was he supposed to help her? "Sp-spinel, you can't keep hurting people. This has to stop!"

Spinel stopped and glanced at Steven, her shoulders beginning to tremble. "Steven—-are you mad?"

"I know this isn't you, Spinel! Something was controlling Lars before," interjected Pearl, pointing her spear at the pink Gem. When Lars was being controlled, the only thing that really hurt him was a blast from her spear. Spinel was sturdier than Lars. It wouldn't hurt as much, but she still had to be careful. "Tell me who you are and what you want!"

"I just want Steven! You people keep getting in my way!" Spinel shouted.

"I-I'm right here! Just put Lars down and we'll talk," tried Steven, attempting to be as calm as possible. "If-if you're not Spinel...can't you...leave her? You can leave her and we can talk..."

"If I leave her you won't love me anymore!" Spinel shouted, clearly getting upset again as she tightened her grip on Lars, forcing a muffled gasp of pain.

"STOP IT!" Sodalite screamed, dropping to her knees as tears flooded her eyes.

"Spinel!" Steven shouted again, "let Lars go! You and I can leave. It will just be you and me, okay? No one else! That's what you want, isn't it?"

Spinel stopped, staring at Steven curiously, "...how do I know that you won't use that Gem once I let him go?" She asked, glancing at Sodalite.

"Steven, what are you doing?" Demanded Pearl in an urgent whisper.

"Sodalite," Steven began, keeping his eyes fixed on Spinel. "This is an order! Don't take any action right now!" He wasn't fond of giving orders, but he had to convince Spinel, or whatever was inside of her, that he wasn't double crossing her. The goal was to get Lars away from her. That's all he could do right now.

Sodalite could barely hear Steven, keeping her eyes fixed on Lars as he struggled to get free. "M-My Steven...I..."

Steven took a few cautious steps forward towards Spinel with an outstretched hand. If this thing inside of Spinel wanted him to love it, that's what he'd do. At least he could pretend, couldn't he? Anything to get it to calm down. "Just come here to me. ...we'll leave together. Just you and me."

"You'll leave with me right now? Only me?"

"Right now," answered Steven quickly, taking a few more steps towards Spinel.

"Steven, you can't-" Pearl made an attempt to reach for him, but a pink wall appeared to block her way. "Steven!"

Spinel smiled, but instead of taking his hand or agreeing to leave, a black tar seemed to seep from the hand she had covering Lars' mouth. It was absorbed into his skin and appeared as dark veins that ran up to his eyes. Before anyone could panic, Lars' eyes began to glow a pure hot white. Seemingly against his will, a power of his had been dragged up and forced out, forming a portal beside them.

"I'm done playing anyway," Spinel huffed before releasing Lars from her grasp and taking Stevens hand instead. Lars' eyes dimmed and his body went limp, Spinel didn't seem to care as she pulled Steven into the portal with her before it vanished and they were gone.

Pearl stood in stunned silence, staring at the air in front of them where the portal had closed, taking her two most important people with it.

While Pearl tried to process what just happened, Sodalite had scrambled to her feet and rushed over to Lars' side, getting back on her knees to loom over him. "L-Lars?! Lars?!" She called once again at a loss for how to treat humans.

"...he's still breathing. ...we'll treat him at the temple..." said Pearl quietly as she approached the two.

Sodalite looked up at Pearl, her tears dripping down onto Lars' chest. "I-I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I-I couldn't—-she took My Steven because I—"

Pearls eyes were still fixed on where the portal had been. "...whatever that thing is...it's got Spinel and Steven now. We'll find them...drag it out and destroy it."

Sodalite was shocked over how composed Pearl was being, even though she could feel her anxiety and anger. By comparison, Sodalite felt quite useless. If she had done what Pearl ordered right away, Lars wouldn't be hurt like this and Steven would still be here. She couldn't let this happen again. "I-I think...I know what's...inside of Spinel now..."


	17. Who Are You

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the late update everyone. If you follow my Twitter or Tumblr, than you already know that it’s been a little hectic for me. 
> 
> However, everything has settled down and I’m back. :)   
> Thanks for your patience

After being pulled through the portal, Steven and Spinel ended up in a forest he didn't recognize. Though to be honest, that was the least of his worries right now. He'd agreed to leave with her to keep everyone safe, but he needed to find out what was going on.

"...what did you do to Spinel?" Asked Steven quietly, still doing his best to stay calm. It was clear that this thing was emotional and easily set off. He didn't want to shout or say something he'd regret.

"I am Spinel," she answered, keeping her back to Steven as she held his hand and pulled him along.

Keeping calm was proving difficult already. You said you didn't want to leave Spinel...because I wouldn't love you if you did. ...so you chose Spinel...because I love her?"

Spinel stopped walking and released Stevens hand. He thought she was going to be upset again, but instead she turned to face him with a smile. "That's right," she answered cheerfully. "I've never been a Gem before and it was a lot harder than taking over something organic, but I worked real hard and I think it's finally set in."

Steven stared at Spinel, a mix of rage and despair swirled at the pit of his stomach. So this happened simply because he fell in love? "You...do you have a name? Your own name?"

"Hmmm...not really. Different things have given me different names before, but it doesn't matter, because once I'm inside something, I'm them. So I'm Spinel now." She answered, her smile never fading.

"What are some of the things people called you?"

"Oh, lots of things," Spinel replied with a wave of her hand, "but it doesn't matter. Oh! Do you need your shirt back? You might get cold." She exclaimed, attempting the lift Stevens shirt over her head.

"No!" Steven insisted, reaching over and pulling the shirt back down to cover Spinels naked form. This was his girlfriends body and he didn't want it on display. Even if there seemed to be no one around. "Please just...keep it on."

"Are you worried about me?" She asked, taking a step forward and reaching over to wrap her arms around his shoulders.

He hated this. This thing was looking up at him with Spinels face, but it wasn't his Spinel. Steven gently took her arms and lifted them off his shoulders. "...I'm sorry, but you have to understand..." he started, averting his gaze to avoid her eyes, "...just because you're inside Spinel...doesn't mean you are her. I can't just..."

"I am her! Everything she is has been mixed with me! I know everything she knows, I have all her memories and feelings. We're the same person now." She insisted desperately. "Trust me, eventually, you won't care about the little things. I chose this body because you wanted it." She closed the distance between them once again, pressing her body up against his own. "You said I tasted sweet before, right? I promise you everything is the same. Once you touch me you'll see." Spinel took his hand and guided it to rest at her thigh, "just touch me again..."

Stevens heart sank at once and he jerked his hand away before taking a step back. "Again? ...how long...have you been...?" He began to ask, but was honestly afraid to finish the question.

Spinel blushed, cupping her cheeks with her hands, "I knew you wanted this body before I took it, but you act so differently when we're alone. Can't you hold me again? Don't you want to? You said it felt good too, didn't you? You always say how much you want to—-"

"STOP!" Shouted Steven, covering his ears as his skin turned pink and his voice echoed through the trees. That was it. He couldn't keep calm anymore. Steven was mortified. How long had this thing been inside Spinel? Had he made love to someone that was just using her body? The very thought disgusted him.

"Steven...?" She began in concern, stepping forward once again with an outstretched hand.

"Don't touch me!" Steven shouted again, slapping Spinels hand away before she could reach him.

Visibly hurt by his actions, Spinel brought her hand back. "...you...don't want me like this? ...than what do you want? That human girl? I can take her instead. ...or any of the other Gems. If you're tired of this one, I can be anyone you want..."

"Stop! Just stop! SHUT UP!" Demanded Steven, doing everything he could not to destroy something. "Please! I just-I don't want any of this! I just wanted to be with Spinel, my Spinel!"

"I-I am Spinel! I am what you want!" She insisted again, her eyes pleading as she watched Steven get more and more upset.

"Than what were you before you were Spinel?! Can you tell me that? Who were you before?"

"Before?" She repeated, clearly not expecting him to ask something like that. "Well...I became a girl named Sarah when I got here. I would have just become someone close to you to start with, but I needed to know who you wanted most. After you said that you loved Spinel, I decided she was the best choice. So I'm Spinel now."

"...what happened to Sarah?"

"Sarah died," she replied evenly. "That's what happens to the people I become. Once I become someone, I mix with everything they are and the only way to not be that person anymore, is for their body to be uninhabitable."

This was all too much. Steven just kept feeling sicker and sicker. The way it sounded now, it's as if he'd lost Spinel without even realizing it. How? When did this thing really take over? Was his relationship with the real Spinel over the moment it started? The girl he grew up with was gone and there was nothing he could do about it? "...w-wait, but you took over Lars too! You were taken out of him and he's okay!" Steven realized aloud. If Lars was okay, couldn't Spinel come out of this unscathed as well? Was Sodalite really the key to fixing all this?

Spinel stared at Steven blankly until she realized what he was getting at. "...you want to use that Gem to make me go away? You're gonna leave me all alone again?!"

"You can't stay inside of Spinel! Please! I'm not trying to hurt you, but you can't just-just become someone else!"

"YOU'RE MINE!" she screamed desperately in reply.

Steven flinched a bit, but it was clear that he wouldn't be able to reason with this girl or be stern enough for her to listen. He just had to get her back to Sodalite somehow. He didn't like the idea, but perhaps poofing her was the best option. He could bubble her and Sodalite could purify her like that.

Spinel seemed wary of Steven now, backing up as she stared him down. As if she knew what he was thinking. "...if that Gem tries to take me out...I'll force my way out instead. I'll shatter this Gem and the other one. I'll break all the Gems into pieces!"

The ground beneath Stevens feet began to sink in a bit. No matter how hard he tried to appear calm, his power betrayed him. He couldn't control the rage that bubbled to the surface. For all intents and purposes, this thing was holding Spinel hostage. Threatening his friends and family. It killed an innocent woman. All for what?

As Steven considered what to do next, Sodalite and Pearl had already brought Lars back to the Temple and called for reinforcements. All the Crystal Gems had arrived, worried for Steven and Spinel as they too, tried to come up with a plan. However, since most of this hinged on Sodalite, Garnet was elected to speak with her. As it was, Lapis was forced to stay outside of the house while Sodalite was inside. Because of the water Gems trauma, the dark fog that surrounded her was too much for Sodalite to handle.

"...now that everyone is up to speed, can you tell us what you know?" Garnet asked, sitting herself down on the couch next to Sodalite. The blue Gem sat with Lars' head in her lap as he lay on the couch to recoup from whatever Spinel had done to him.

"I-I can't be...completely sure..." Sodalite began, staring down at Lars' face, waiting anxiously for him to wake up. "...but it's...it's what she said. She said that...she was nice to me...and that she helped me. When I was...trying to get to earth...a girl helped me. A being that I only saw for a moment. She vanished after showing me the way. ...the next thing I knew...I was-I was on Earth."

Garnet did recall Sodalite mentioning this after she had been healed, but they never thought twice about it. "...and you think that being is controlling Spinel now?"

Sodalite nodded her head, "...I-I think...she used my body...to get here. I didn't really notice...s-since I was broken already. ...but...what I felt from Spinel at first...it was familiar. ...a-as if I'd felt it before."

"What does this thing want? Can you think back on what that thing was feeling when it was inside you?"

"...no," answered Sodalite regrettably. "There were too many feelings...too many thoughts inside at the time. ...but when I was close to Spinel...it was like...a terrible obsession. Malice...for everyone around her. I couldn't feel anything when she was inside of Lars until I took it away from him..."

Garnet thought for a moment before getting to her feet. "If that's the case, we don't have time to wait around for Lars to wake up. Peridot, tell Lapis to go and find Lion. Perhaps he can sense Steven and get us to him."

Peridot didn't waste any time in following Garnets instructions and rushed outside. Pearl had already begun pacing the floor slowly, wondering why Lion had run off in the first place.

"Wh-when will Lars wake up?" Asked Sodalite, almost afraid to look away from his face.

"Give it time. Peridot already confirmed that he's not in any danger," answered Garnet.

"But if we find Lion before Lars wakes up, you're going to have to leave him and come with us. We will need your help to handle this thing." Pearl insisted.

"L-leave Lars...?" Repeated Sodalite as she finally looked up. "I-I can't! He-he'll be all alone!"

"I'll stay here with him," offered Amethyst.

"B-but...I-if he's not with me...I can't—-"

"—-Your Diamond is in danger!" Interrupted Pearl. She didn't want to manipulate Sodalite like this, but it was true that without Lars, they didn't have anything to make her focus. "Y-you have to do what you can to save him!"

Sodalite appeared terribly conflicted now, looking back down at Lars' sleeping face. "...I-I know..." she answered quietly. Honestly, she was not happy about the idea of leaving Lars behind. She also wondered how she'd manage without him. She could only hope that he woke up before they found that pink beast. She just didn't want to let everyone down like she had earlier. If she hadn't froze up in fear, this might have been over by now and Lars wouldn't be hurt like this.


	18. I Love You to Pieces

For a some time now, Steven and the Fake Spinel had been at a stand still. There was a terrible storm inside of Steven that he wasn't able to hide. He'd only just found out that something had been controlling the girl he loved and he didn't have any idea how far back this went. This thing killed an innocent girl in the process of getting to Spinel and no one noticed. He hated feeling like this. When did this thing take over? Why didn't he notice? Even though he wanted so much to treasure Spinel like she deserved, he'd already let her down in the worst way. He had to make this right. This thing already seemed to figure out his plan to use Sodalite, so how was he supposed to get her back to Beach City without her being suspicious?

"...why...are you willing to go this far?" Steven asked, swallowing the lump in his throat.

Spinel appeared confused, but she smiled wide and stepped forward, cupping Stevens face in her hands to lift his chin and meet his gaze. "...because I love you. Soon, you'll love only me."

Honestly, all Steven wanted to do was look away. Though it was Spinels voice, knowing it wasn't her saying these things made him sick. All he could do was stifle the urge to wretch and remain calm. She'd already threatened to hurt or shatter Spinel if she felt he didn't want her. He just needed to find a way to make her understand. "...if you love me...why would you do something like this...?"

"It's not my fault," Spinel insisted, "you only looked at this body. So I had no choice but to take it."

Steven grabbed her hands and lowered them from his face. He really didn't want her to touch him. Not when it wasn't his Spinel. "No...I meant, if you love someone...you're supposed to want them to be happy."

"You will be happy," she replied without missing a beat.

Steven wasn't sure what else he could say to this thing. He wasn't even sure why or how it came to love him. "...Spinel...I grew up with her. She's my best friend. I wanted...I wanted to be with HER."

"I know," she answered calmly. "It's okay. Like I said, I have all her memories. I know everything she knows. We can be the same person you've always known."

This creature had an answer for everything. She just sounded insane. Fine. If she wanted to be treated just like Spinel, he would just have to play along. How else was he going to get her back to beach city? He had to try something.

Doing his very best to seem sincere, Steven smiled, "o-okay, I think I get it now."

"You do?!" She asked in cheerful surprise.

"Y-yeah. I was worried because I thought that Spinel would change...but as long as everything is the same..."

"Yeah! Everything is the same, so you don't have to worry about anything!" Spinel exclaimed happily, taking Stevens hands with a bright smile.

Though he kept a fake smile on his face, it pained him to see Spinel smiling so sweetly with the dark eyes of someone else. He just had to endure it until he could get her back to the temple. Hopefully, Sodalite was staying close by. "So um, where are we? I was kinda hoping we could go home and rest? ...it's been a long day..."

Spinel shrugged her shoulders, "I'm not sure. I forced Lars to teleport us, but I couldn't control where it would send us. This is probably some place he was thinking about recently."

Steven looked around, hoping wherever Lars had sent them wasn't too far from home. He would have to go over the how of all this once things had settled. "...okay, well let's find a road or something. Maybe we can find a way back home once we—"

"—-we're not going back." Stated Spinel simply, the smile gone from her face.

Once again, Steven had to be careful. It was starting to seem like any little thing could set her off. "B-but you said everything would be the same, right? Spinel and I live in Beach City. And...Spinel would never leave Pearl without saying goodbye."

She considered Stevens words for a moment, but instead of answering him, Spinel suddenly looked horrified. "I-I hurt Pearl," she mumbled out in a panic, as if she had just realized what she'd done.

"Spinel...?" Steven began, wondering if the real Spinel was peeking through.

"I didn't mean to!" She shouted desperately, jerking her hands away from Stevens. "I-I didn't—! I can't-! Steven...!"

"Spinel, Spinel look at me! We're going to fix this! I promise!" Steven insisted as he grabbed her shoulders, hoping to help her focus. She was in there. She was fighting this. "I won't leave you alone!"

"Steven!" Called out a familiar voice in the distance.

Distracting them both, Lion came rushing through the trees with Connie on his back. It seems he had gone to get her once things took a bad turn. The young woman was already wielding her sword, but seemed shocked when she came upon the scene to find it was only Steven and Spinel there. Since Lion couldn't tell her the circumstances, she just assumed that Steven needed help. Dismounting the Lion quickly, she lowered her sword and looked around. Even if Steven and Spinel looked upset, there didn't seem to be any danger.

"What's going on?" Connie asked, actually relieved that no one was fighting.

Steven was at a loss for how to explain this, but he wasn't going to get the chance anyway. Spinel had already pushed him to the side and outstretched her arms, grabbing Connie by the arms and slamming her back against the nearest tree.

"You're not needed anymore!" Spinel screamed, tears streaming down her cheeks. "Go away!"

"Spinel, stop!" Steven pleaded, not wanting this to go any further.

"Shut up! You're MINE!"

Connie was certainly confused over Spinels behavior, but this was hardly the time for questions. Her back already ached and Spinel was squeezing her arms so tightly she worried a bone would snap any moment. Luckily, Lion roared and a shock wave pushed Spinel back, forcing her to release Connie and stumble back.

"What in the-?!" Connie gasped as she steadied herself and readied her sword. "Steven what's going on?!"

"She's not herself! This isn't-"

"SHUT UP!" Spinel demanded as she made to lunge for Connie once more.

"Damn it!" Steven shouted before reaching out his hand and forming a large pink bubble around Spinel. Essentially trapping her from hurting anyone.

The moment she realized what had happened, Spinel became unhinged and began banging desperately at the walls of her pink prison.

Connie watched anxiously, confused and concerned. "...what happened to her?"

"Something is inside her. I...it's not the Spinel we know right now," explained Steven sadly.

"Let me out, Steven!" Screamed Spinel, her voice muffled by the orb placed around her.

"I won't let you hurt Connie! Spinel would never do that!"

The pigtailed gem stopped and turned her wild gaze to Connie, making the young girl flinch slightly. "...do you like that one better?"

"I-I just don't want anyone to get hurt! Please!" Steven pleaded.

"If you won't love me...even like this..." Spinel began, muttering under her breath.

"Spinel...?" Steven tried, stepping towards the bubble and placing his hands at the surface.

"You'll love me..." she continued to mumble, "...once everything else is gone..."

Steven couldn't quite hear her, but he didn't have the chance to ask her to repeat herself before Spinel began pounding hard at her own chest. The bubble may have muffled the sound, but Steven could hear something begin to crack.

"St-stop!" He pleaded as he quickly made the bubble vanish in order to get to her. Her Gem was covered by his shirt, so he couldn't see the crack, but Spinels form was already beginning to glitch. He gripped her wrists tight as his skin began to glow pink.

"Are you getting angry, Steven?" Asked Spinel with a tearful smile. "Don't worry. I'll leave you with a perfect scar."

Even without hitting herself, Spinels Gem continued to crack slowly as black ooze spilled from the fissures. The thing inside of her was forcing its way out. It was going to shatter her in the process, just like she threatened to do before. Steven licked his hand and pressed it against the Gem, but even though it healed, it simply began cracking again just as quickly.

"Move, Steven!" Shouted Connie, determined to poof Spinel before this thing could shatter her.

Steven's feet felt like stone. He didn't know how to stop this. He just couldn't understand why this thing would hurt so many people just to get his affection. This wasn't right. This wasn't love.

Connie was panicked. Clearly Steven wasn't able to think straight. Taking the lead, she rushed forward and rammed into Steven with her shoulder to push him away. Before he could respond, Connie slashed at Spinel and her actions forced a large cloud of dust to blow out against them all. Covering their eyes from the spray of dirt and wind, Steven and Connie waited anxiously until the dust cloud dissipated, only to have their hopes come crashing down in an instant.

Glimmering against the sun that peeked through the trees were small, shattered pieces of a Gem.

Connies sword slipped from her hand and fell to the ground before she dropped to her knees. Stunned into silence, she stared at the glittering pink pieces with her stomach in knots. That didn't just happen. She wanted to believe that this didn't just happen.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter was a bit short, but only because I had to cut it off at this stopping point for the next Chapter to flow into it well enough. 
> 
> Also, I’m sorry. The next chapter will be a bit heavy...


	19. Connies Concerns and Stevens Solitude

Connie stood outside of Stevens home, several books stacked in her arms with a few large maps. She was reluctant to go inside. After all, it had only been a few days or so since Spinels shattering.

After it happened, Steven seemed to be in shock. She and Lion brought him home, but he didn't say a single word, nor did he seem to register that anyone was around him. When Connie was forced to explain what happened to the others, the house was thrown into chaos. Pearl collapsed to the floor and began crying out. Connie had never heard her teacher scream out in such anguish before. Garnet was quiet, but tears clearly trickled down her face. Amethyst was turned away from everyone and had smashed in the kitchen table.

As for the others, Bismuth swore that this wouldn't go unpunished and despite Connies pleas that that they stay and mourn together, Bismuth insisted on going on a search for the creature that did this immediately. Lapis agreed and left with her, holding a sobbing Peridot by the hand as they followed after their friend.

Connie could understand their reaction. It wasn't just Steven who lost someone after all. Still, with everyone else grieving, Connie felt like she had no time to mourn. She had to make sure everyone was okay. Especially since she was growing more concerned with Steven by the second. His eyes had been pink since they arrived and all he did was stare blankly at the cold, sharp shards in his hands. At one point he had gripped them so tightly that his palms were cut open. When Connie attempted to move the shards in order to bandage his hands, that was the first time Steven had reacted to anything. He flinched and in a flash of pink light, the house began to shake, the windows cracking or breaking altogether.

After that, it was clear that touching Spinels pieces wasn't in the cards right now. Understandable. All Connie could do was bring Steven to his room. Though it's not like she could get him to lay down. She stayed as long as she could, but eventually she had to go back home.

Now, she was back at the house after staying away for a few days. She hoped that she'd given Steven enough time to come to grips with everything. Truthfully, she would have liked to give them all some more space, but she had gotten a message from Peridot asking for her help. Apparently they had found a small lead on the creatures whereabouts and wanted Connies help in tracking it.

With a deep breath to prepare herself, Connie walked into the Beach House, shocked by what she saw the moment she stepped through the door.

Nearly every piece of furniture was destroyed. The couch had been ripped up and the stuffing pulled out. The table and chairs in the kitchen all smashed to pieces. A closer inspection would reveal that all the windows had been broken as well, glass shards scattered along the floor.

"...what on earth...?" Connie whispered under her breath.

Peridot had only just warped into the house when she spotted Connie standing in the middle of the ransacked home. "Ah, you're here. Do you have what I asked for?" She asked, as if she didn't notice the wreckage.

"Y-yeah, but Peridot...what happened here? Was there a fight that—"

"—it was Steven," answered Peridot quickly, her tone rather morose.

"Steven?! Is-is he okay? What do you mean he did all this? I don't understand."

Connie couldn't imagine Steven causing so much damage on his own. Of course she had seen him upset before, but he was never very destructive as a result.

Peridot appeared hesitant to talk about it. "...he...hasn't been the same since it happened. I think...if we find this thing, he'll feel a little better."

"Where is he?" Connie asked now. She had to see him for herself.

"He...he's usually in the observatory. He's been using the Diamond system to try and track down the being that...shattered Spinel."

Connie didn't waste any time. She handed off the supplies in her hands and rushed up the stairs to Stevens room. It wasn't much different up there. His blanket and sheets had been shredded, most of of his possessions were tossed about on the floor, and the television screen looked as if it had been smashed in. Growing more alarmed by the second, Connie picked up the pace and finally reached the observatory where Steven was standing at his Diamond console, currently speaking with Yellow Diamond.

"—-and that's all that we found there." Yellow Diamond finished.

Connie couldn't quite see Stevens face, but when she stepped forward to approach him, she was stopped as Steven slammed his fist against the consoles surface.

"Dammit!" He shouted angrily, his voice rather hoarse.

"Steven, I suggest we send my troops down to earth. We'll be able to cover more ground that way. Even if this creature is staying nearby as you suspect, it would be strategically favorable to have more eyes on the ground." Yellow Diamond suggested evenly.

"...fine," agreed Steven, "Peridot will contact you to confirm where to start looking. ...but keep an eye on everyone. If anyone's Gems start to turn black, I want to know right away."

Without a goodbye, Steven switched off the call and sighed. Now that the communication was cut off, Connie tried again to get Stevens attention.

"...Steven?" She called out cautiously.

Whipping around at once, Steven and Connie were finally face to face. Though this did nothing to ease her concerns. Steven looked awful. His eyes were still pink, but now they were bloodshot, with heavy bags beneath them as if he hadn't slept in days.

He seemed to acknowledge her presence, but simply looked at her with a blank stare. "...what do you want?"

The cold tone of his voice caused her heart to ache. He'd never spoken to her like this. "...I...I came to see how you were. ...I wanted to make sure you were taking care of yourself..."

"I'm fine," he answered, turning back to the console to go over a large map that had appeared on the screen.

"...Steven...Spinel wouldn't—"

"—-SHUT UP!" Steven shouted, his voice echoing off the walls and shaking the room, nearly jostling Connie off balance.

"This-what's happened to you?" Connie asked desperately once she regained her footing. "I know losing her is hard, but you can't let this—-"

"What happened to me?! Repeated Steven sardonically. "I fell in love with Spinel and she got shattered for it!" Steven shouted again, the glass cracking around them which this time threatened to cave in the fragile ceiling.

Before Connie could speak again, Pearl had warped into the room just in time to see the glass splintering.

"Steven!" Pearl exclaimed as she rushed over to him, placing her hand on his shoulder. "It's okay!"

Pearls appearance seemed to calm him down some. Steven didn't look angry anymore. In fact, his eyes welled up in tears, prompting Pearl to wrap her arms around him.

"It's okay," said Pearl again. "...why don't you go and see Sodalite and then try to rest a bit?"

Without a word, Steven nodded his head and walked to the warp pad, leaving the room in a flash of light.

"Thank you for bringing the books we asked for," Pearl began before Connie could speak.

"...Pearl, Steven is—"

"-I know," Pearl interjected sadly. "...Steven has been...a bit unstable. Its been hard for him. B-but it's okay," insisted Pearl with a tearful smile, "because...once we capture the thing that caused all this...Steven and I...everyone will feel a lot better..."

Connie could tell that Pearl was barely keeping it together herself. No doubt she was forcing herself to function for Stevens sake. "...revenge only causes more pain, remember? The Diamonds wanted revenge for Pink...and it just ended in corrupted Gems and sick experiments on shattered ones. That thing...doesn't deserve to go unpunished...but Steven wants to kill it. ...if he were thinking straight...I know he wouldn't really want to take a life."

Pearl didn't reply. In truth, she understood why Connie was concerned, but she refused to agree with her. It had always been Pearls job to teach and look after Spinel. For more than six thousand years, she worked hard to keep Spinel safe. She was Roses knight, but she was Spinels caretaker. Now...she'd lost the one other person she had made a promise to. She wanted revenge just as much as Steven did.

"Connie...you don't have to worry about any of this. ...once things have settled down...Steven will be back to normal. His power is controlled by his emotion...and that's the only reason he's been a little unstable. ...but I've just sent him to see Sodalite. She's been purifying him for last couple of days."

The human girl tensed up at Pearls stubborn attempt to side step the real concern here. Steven was already unstable. How would he be after taking a life? Since it wouldn't help to bring Spinel back, he'd just end up hating himself and regretting it. Connie had to find someone that might help her to convince him that this wasn't right. Clearly, Pearl was not going to be that someone. "...well...I brought what Peridot asked for...so I guess I'll be on my way. Um...is he seeing Sodalite in Little Homeworld...or...?"

Pearl shook her head, "no, we need Sodalite to find and fight this thing, so Steven is having her stay here with us for now. After she purifies Steven, she'll be going out with Garnet on patrol to search."

Yet another turn of events that surprised Connie. "...and Lars was okay with this? I thought he was taking care of her..."

"It's not up to Lars," replied Pearl simply. "Sodalite wants to help Steven."

"But isn't that because she thinks he's her Diamond? She won't refuse anything he asks for. Isn't that...sort of..."

"Connie, I appreciate the concern, but we are all just doing the best we can to get by right now. ...this is what Steven and I need to get through this. I don't expect you to understand, but I do expect you to be supportive of Steven. He doesn't need anything else upsetting him..."

"...I should go. ...I'll come to visit again as soon as I can," relented Connie finally. This conversation would go nowhere and she didn't want to belittle their grief by lecturing everyone on how to handle this situation. Perhaps with more time, rational thought might take a bigger part in this. "Please take care of yourself too, Pearl."

Connie said her goodbyes and made her way out of Stevens home. As she stepped onto the beach, she took one last look at her friends home. "Don't worry Spinel..." she began quietly, feeling her nose begin to burn as tears glistened in her eyes, "...I'll do my best to look after them..."

Though she and Spinel had never been the best of friends, Connie knew Spinel was a kind soul and loved her friends dearly. She wouldn't want to see them like this. Connie also felt a sense kinship with Spinel in a way. They both loved Steven and regarded Pearl as a mentor. If they hadn't fallen for the same person, perhaps they would have been better friends. No matter the case now, Connie wanted to honor Spinels feelings. She'd have to look after them in her place. Even if she was retreating today, she'd be back soon to make sure that the people Spinel most loved, didn't end up doing something they would only regret.

Steven had barely registered Connies departure. In fact, he was barely aware that she had come to visit at all. For the past few days, it had been difficult to keep his thoughts straight. His grief caused his abilities to fluctuate and his empathic power was somehow focusing inward. He kept seeing memories of the past as if they were real. All memories he shared with Spinel. At first, it made him happy. Seeing those memories so vividly allowed him to think everything had been a bad dream, but soon it was difficult to tell the memories from reality and once he was pulled from them, his grief would well up all over again.

His obsession with finding the thing that shattered Spinel was the only thing that allowed him lucid moments. However, when he thought about that creature, there was a rage inside of him that Steven had never felt before. That anger and hatred consumed him, making his power all that more destructive and dangerous for those around him. Lately, the only way he was able to get any rest, was if Sodalite purified his emotions. Perhaps he could have gone to see Blue for this, but Steven didn't trust the Diamonds completely.

"...I'm sorry..." Steven muttered miserably, tears streaming down his face as he rested his head on Spinels lap. He had taken refuge in his mother's room, accompanied there by an illusion of Spinel the clouds had created.

"For what?" Asked the fake Spinel with a light laugh. "You haven't done anything wrong, have you?"

"I couldn't...save you..." replied Steven as he reached up and placed his hand against her cheek.

"You can still save me," answered the illusion calmly as she looked down at Steven.

"That's right. ...I'll find the one that did this and make them pay. ...then...you'll be happy, right?" Stevens voice was weak and hoarse. All the crying and shouting, it made moments like this even harder for him. "I'be been trying to make you happy. ...keeping you close," continued Steven as he placed his hand over his heart. "Bismuth made a locket for me. ...for you. You always said you liked the sound of my heartbeat. Does that...can you hear it?"

Spinel nodded her head happily, "I can. Thank you, Steven. I'll keep listening to your heart...until you come and get me, okay? Just promise you won't take too long?"

Steven gripped gently at the locket beneath his shirt where he kept Spinels shards safely next to his heart. "Yeah. ...it won't be long now. I'll fix everything..."

As Steven began to feel tired, his cell phone rang, pulling him from the one restful moments he'd had in days. He slid his phone from his pocket and answered it without bothering to see who was calling.

"What is it?" Asked Steven in annoyance.

"Where are you guys?" Asked Lars over the phone.

"...what?"

"I'm here to pick up Sodalite, but no ones home. Did ya take her out for an extra patrol? You know she can't handle so many in one day."

Steven thought for a moment. He didn't remember ordering another search, but it was possible he did and just forgot. Apparently, he'd done a lot he couldn't recall in the last few days. With his power and emotion out of control, coupled with the lack of sleep, he wasn't functioning well at all. Instead of answering Lars' question, Steven hung up the phone and got to his feet.

"Are you going to come and get me?" Spinel asked with a smile, watching Steven as he walked away to meet with Lars.

The room answered Stevens unspoken wish and removed the illusion of Spinel from the room. He wondered why she always asked him that. Every time he left this room, any version of Spinel he made would ask him to come and get her. If only he could.


	20. Whites Unwelcome Solution

Steven left his mothers room to find Lars standing in the middle of the disheveled living room.

"...you guys should think about cleaning..." Suggested Lars, trying to make light of the situation to start with. Steven hadn't really been himself for a while.

"Been busy," stated Steven evenly.

Lars took that short reply as a sign that Steven wasn't yet in the mood for jokes. "So, where is Sodalite?"

"Probably with Garnet. She's not allowed to leave the house alone."

Lars bristled a bit, "allowed?" He repeated. "...Steven...just because she agreed to help doesn't mean you can order her around."

"She's the only real weapon we have against that thing," replied Steven irately, "and she doesn't exactly fight well on her own. So Garnet needs to be with her if she leaves the house."

Lars sighed. He didn't like the way Steven was going about this, but at least Sodalite was being kept safe. However he could only imagine how scared she was right now. "Okay, yeah, I get it. Let's just contact Garnet. I promised Sodalite that I'd spend some time with her after the bakery closed."

Before Steven could answer, the warp activated and in a stream of light, Garnet appeared, carrying a limp, sickly looking Sodalite by the waist with an annoyed Amethyst beside them.

"Sodalite? What's wrong with her?" Asked Lars in alarm. The fusion was holding her like a sack and Sodalite looked as if she might throw up, her dizzy eyes flooding with tears. Each Gem was covered in dirt and they had small tears in their clothes which revealed tiny scratches on their bodies.

Amethyst appeared rather run down and annoyed, even Garnet looked as if she could use a break. Clearly their outing with Sodalite had been a bit vexing for them. "She panicked when we got too high and then screamed all the way down the cliff clinging to Garnet before everything went dark. When I could finally see again, we were all in different locations and it took forever to find her because she was clinging to the top of a tall tree and wouldn't jump down!"

"...to be fair, you cutting down the tree didn't help much," added Garnet.

"Yeah..." agreed Amethyst with an annoyed sigh. "Especially since all she did was scream all the way down and then everything went dark again. It's really starting to mess with my eyes."

"But did you find anything?" Asked Steven, uninterested in what caused their appearance.

Garnet shook her head and Steven felt his stomach drop. He said nothing and placed his hand over his heart where the locket was hidden beneath his shirt.

"But I'm sure we'll find something tomorrow!" Amethyst insisted with a forced smile. "We just need to cover more ground!"

Sodalite finally looked up, ready to apologize for not having any positive results for her Diamond, but when she spotted an irritated Lars beside him, she instead began to squirm in Garnets grip.

Garnet dropped the freckled Gem who face planted on the warp pad with an 'oomph.'

"H-hey, careful!" Lars groaned anxiously.

However, the fall didn't seem to bother Sodalite. She quickly scrambled to her feet and leapt at Lars in tears. "Lars, Lars! It-it was horrible! That Amethyst is-is out of control!"

Lars was nearly pushed down when Sodalite ran to hug him, but he steadily kept his balance and pat her head. "It's okay. You're fine now."

"Hey! I'm not out of control," argued Amethyst. "She's the one that just kept crying in that tree. What was I supposed to do? Just wait until she finished crying?! She cries all the time! We'd have been there all night!"

Sodalite spun herself to hide behind Lars' back, gripping at his jacket as she peeked over his shoulder. "...see?" Sodalite whimpered.

"We're all just a little impatient right now..." said Garnet, reaching over to place her hand at the top of Amethysts head to calm her. "Things will go better tomorrow."

"I want to go out there! I'm sick of sitting here and waiting!" Steven shouted with tears in his eyes.

"...Steven, we've been over this. It's not safe. Spinel wouldn't want to use you as bait." Garnet explained.

Sodalite whimpered once again and hid her face in Lars back, her hands trembling as she held tight to his jacket. Lars took this as a sign that things were about to get much worse. A gut feeling that was quickly confirmed when Steven turned pink and the house began to shake.

"What Spinel wanted?!" Steven repeated in a tearful rage. "Stop trying to speak for her! That thing made it clear that it wants ME! The best way to draw it out is for me to go-"

Suddenly, Pearl burst in through the front door in a panic. At first they thought she had seen the house shaking, but she didn't seemed concerned about that as she rushed inside. "Steven! The Diamonds, they're all here! They're landing right now! I thought you only asked for Yellows soldiers."

His pink glow slowly dimmed and Steven looked confused. "I did..." he answered, wondering why all of them would show up.

"Th-the Diamonds...? E-even...even Bl-Blue?" Asked Sodalite, frozen in fear. Blue was the one that made her and also the one that ordered her shattering. What would Blue Diamond do if she saw that she was still in one piece?

"You don't have to meet her," Lars said quickly. "Just stay in the house with me."

Steven was clearly agitated with the Diamonds arrival and honestly, seeing Sodalite and Lars was not helping his mood. Anything that resembled a couple annoyed him right now. Without waiting for anyone's opinions, Steven stomped out of the house to go and see just what they had all decided to gather here for.

The Diamonds were being lowered by a platform when Steven walked onto the beach, followed by the Crystal Gems.

"Steven!" White Diamond greeted with her usual delighted smile, always seemingly obtuse to his agitation. "It's been so long!"

"...what do you guys want?" He asked bluntly. Not in the mood to deal with them all at once. At least with Yellow it was straight to the point.

"Well, I brought the troops as we discussed, Steven," announced Yellow proudly, "but they insisted on coming along."

"Because it's not just Yellow that can help you," insisted Blue with an eager and hopeful smile as she leaned down a bit. "I have plenty of Gems that can help you too. Surely, my Gem would be better suited to searching for this strange creature of yours."

"He doesn't need your Gems when he can use mine," argued Yellow in a huff. "My Gems are precise and officiant. Why, if my troops had been deployed from the start we would have already found the thing."

"You're both going about this all wrong," interjected White, pushing her way between the other two Diamonds to get on her knees in front of Steven and his family. "Steven, I came because I thought of something that will definitely make you feel all better!" White seemed rather pleased with herself as she opened her hand and held it to Stevens eye level. Standing in the middle of her palm was a cute, noodle limbed, pink Spinel. Her Gem was cut in the shape of a heart and was displayed at the top of her right, gloved hand. She was in a pink and white overalled dress with large pink, Mary Jane shoes that squeaked when she walked, her curled heart pigtails bouncing with each step.

"I'm so excited to meet you!" The Spinel chirped out happily, hopping from Whites hand to greet Steven on the sand.

Pearl quickly clapped her hand over her mouth to muffle the sob that threatened to spill out. They had only just lost Spinel and this one very much reminded Pearl of how she used to be. As Pearl turned away from the Spinel, Garnet stepped forward with clenched fists.

"You can't just replace someone that's precious!" Demanded the fusion angrily.

"What? But of course you can replace a Gem," replied White with a straight face. "All Spinels are made for entertainment. Pink adored hers and since Steven was so upset that his got broken, I made him a new one. Now he won't have to be lonely."

Steven couldn't believe what was happening. For several minutes now, he'd been silent, simply staring down at this new Spinel in disbelief. Had White really come here thinking this Gem could simply take Spinels place?

"Oh no..." Lars mumbled, staring down at the awkward scene from the beach house window, Sodalite still hiding behind his back.

"So Steven, what do you think? She isn't exactly like the old one, but if she had never broken, she would have looked like this the whole time," explained White happily.

Garnet was practically trembling in anger. That White Diamond would dare to try something like this was proof of how little she still cared for individual life. "You—!"

Though Garnet was prepared to tell White off, she and the other Gems were distracted when Steven began to laugh. A bitter, angry, empty laugh.

Pearl wiped her eyes and turned back to Steven in concern, "Steven..."

"You...you really think...I'd be happy with this?" Growled Steven through gritted teeth now, making it a point not to look at the Diamonds.

White seemed confused as she lowered herself further to get a closer look at Stevens expression. "You're not? I thought you wanted a Spinel to replace—"

"YOU CAN'T REPLACE HER! NO ONE CAN!" Steven screamed, lifting his head to reveal the river of tears flowing down his cheeks. His body turned pink instantly and his eyes nearly glowed as a shockwave was formed from his voice, pushing the Diamonds back slightly. Yellow and Blue were immediately concerned at Stevens very 'Pink' like outburst, but White only frowned, almost offended that he had so harshly rejected her gift.

"Spinels are rather rare to make you know," replied White, "but I guess if you really don't like her, I can make you a different Gem as a playmate. Oh! Perhaps something-"

"Spinel wasn't a 'playmate.' She was...she's my best friend..." seethed Steven.

"Well of course, that's what Spinels are made for." White Diamond shrugged, still confused. She honestly didn't see the difference between this Spinel and the old one besides that this one wasn't broken.

Blue stepped forward and shook her head, "White...perhaps you shouldn't press the issue so much..."

Steven hates feeling this way. He hated feeling so much anger towards someone. How dare she come here and mock his feelings for Spinel as if they meant nothing at all. As if another Spinel could step in and Steven would just fall in line like his love never existed or was so easily broken.

"Don't be sad," pleaded the new Spinel with a smile as she reached for him.

"DONT TOUCH ME!" Steven demanded in disgust. His voice booming once again, this time causing the Spinels Gem to crack from the pressure of the sound.

At once, Steven gasped, staring wide eyed at the innocent Gem, now trying to maintain her form. He cracked her. Hurt her. None of this was her fault. If anyone deserved it, he'd have preferred White be the one to suffer.

"Arrrgh!" Steven groaned, closing his eyes tight. These hateful thoughts that plagued him only seemed to be getting worse. Spinel was gone...and he was just angry that the world had to keep turning as if she was never here. He knew it didn't make sense to be spiteful of everyone, but it wasn't fair that she was gone. Why did it have to be Spinel? "It's my fault! I'm sorry!" Shouted Steven as broken pieces of his own shield began to form around him.

It's true. Steven knew it. If anyone was to blame for all this. It was him. That creature picked Spinel because of him. It chose her because he loved her. Pearl was right, they never should have tried to be together. He never should have realized how he felt. If anything, he should have kept his feelings locked away. At least then Spinel would still be here with him. Even if he could never be with her as a lover, he just wanted her back. His love for her had only caused her pain. How was he supposed to live with himself knowing that?

The ground was turning into a crater beneath his feet and though everyone was inclined to help him, they were held up in doing so when everything went pitch black around them.

Steven flinched at the sudden blanket of darkness. His heart was beating so fast, it was now the only sound to fill the void.

"So-Sodalite?" He began, sure that this was her doing.

Though he couldn't see anything, he felt a small, trembling hand push against his chest, pressing firmly over his heart.

"I-I'm sorry..." wept Sodalite, slowly taking in all the terrible feelings that Steven had raging inside of him. All that pain was now hers for the moment and it hurt so much. The mere pressure of it threatened to weigh her down. "This is-it's all I can do..."

Steven's heart rate began to even out and his tears finally stopped. Sodalite's purification didn't exactly make him feel better, just numb, but it was still better than the agony from before. "...thanks..."

Sodalite was happy to be of use, but it was hard to smile through the pain that she took from Steven. His empathic abilities surely didn't help when he was feeling like this. She kept her hand to his chest even after it was done, just to make sure he didn't fly off the handle once again. However, perhaps it was because she was close to Steven, or the fact that she was touching him, Sodalite felt something familiar.

"Spinel?" Sodalite questioned aloud.

"What?" Asked Steven before the darkness lifted and he was suddenly standing back on the beach with Sodalite nowhere to be found.


	21. A Hopeful Game

Steven stood completely still, staring at the empty space where Sodalite had been. After she purified him, he did feel a little better, but he was stuck on what she said before she vanished. Spinel. Why did she say her name? 

“Hey!!” Lars shouted as he ran down to the beach, “where’d Sodalite go?”

“Sodalite?” Repeated White Diamond.

“...she...she just left.” Steven muttered.

“What?!” Lars exclaimed in a slight panic,

Garnet stepped forward and placed her hand at Stevens shoulder, shaking him from his inner thoughts.

“Steven, you should take Lars and go look for Sodalite,” she instructed.

“Yeah, well I don’t suppose you’d know a good place to start?” Asked Lars with an already tired sigh. It had been a while since she just ran off like this and he didn’t miss how difficult it was to find her.

“Who is this Sodalite? A friend of yours?” Yellow asked with a raised brow. “The name sounds familiar.”

“Ah, I believe I made a Sodalite Gem for Pink long ago,” recalled Blue, “...but I was certain that we destroyed the Gem when she proved to be useless...”

Lars flinched, but Garnet caught his attention by placing a hand on his shoulder as well. “...boys, you’ll really want to go and look for Sodalite. Trust me. I think you’ll have some luck near the Arcade.”

Steven glanced at Garnet and then back towards the Spinel that the Diamonds had brought for him. He quickly turned away in disgust, “yeah, I really should get out of here. Come on, Lars.”

“I still don’t like those giant ladies,” Lars muttered as he and Steven turned to walk away.

“Steven, wouldn’t you like-“ White tried as she leaned forward, but the Crystal Gems stood in front of her defiantly.

While the Gems dealt with the Diamond intrusion, Steven and Lars rushed the docks, glancing around amongst the small summer crowds that were enjoying their day. 

“Why would Sodalite come here?” Asked Lars once they neared the arcade. “She hates crowded places and loud noises. The Arcade is gonna be her worst nightmare.”

“Garnet must have seen her here, or she wouldn’t have mentioned it,” replied Steven with a shrug. After that encounter, he wanted to break something, but thought it better to keep these emotions to himself.

“Hey! Sodalite! You out here?” Lars called out, walking with Steven until they reached the Arcades entrance.

They glanced around the area in silence, waiting for a reply that never came.

“Maybe she ran off because of all the noise here...” sighed Lars.

Steven wasn’t so sure. Garnet wouldn’t have sent them here for no reason and he was eager to ask Sodalite why she said Spinels name. He continued to search the crowd, only to spot a familiar blue color, surrounded by a small group of young men. With a closer look, he could see Sodalite, obviously anxious as she spoke with the strangers.

“Lars, there she is,” Steven informed his friend before making a bee line through the tourists to reach her.

“Are you sure we can’t help you? I know this town pretty well, you know.” One of the men said with a smile.

Sodalite shook her head frantically, “n-no! I-I was just-um-I need to find-“

The men loomed over Sodalite as she sank nervously, they didn’t notice Steven approaching until his large shadow stretched out from behind them.

The men quickly turned around with a start, staring up nervously at the now much larger Steven who practically towered over them. He had been in such a bad mood that his Gem was causing his body to grow slowly ever since they left for the arcade.

“You guys have some business with her?” He asked irately.

“Wha?! N-no! I just-she looked troubled so we offered to help. We weren’t hitting on your girlfriend, honest.” answered one of the men frantically.

“She’s not his girlfriend,” Lars announced in a huff as he caught up to Steven. Upon seeing him, Sodalite immediately rushed over to the Pink human, hugging his arm and hiding herself between him and Steven.

Without another word, the men dashed off and once they were out of sight, Lars turned to Sodalite. “They didn’t do anything did they?”

Sodalite shook her head in silence.

“What are you doing out here. You hate the boardwalk...” asked Lars.

“Spinel...she-“

Steven quickly turned to Sodalite and placed his hands on her shoulders, forcing the nervous Gem to look his way, “did you feel something?! You said her name before as well! Why?”

Sodalite panicked a little when she felt pressured to answer, but she did her best. “I-I heard a voice. It-it was small but-but I’m sure. She-Spinel called me...she-she wanted to play a game...”

“A game...?” Repeated Steven, feeling his heart start to pound against his chest. “...but...Spinel...” he placed his hand over the shards he kept over his heart with a frown, “...she couldn’t have...”

“I-I heard it! I-I know I did!” Sodalite insisted as bravely as she could.

“But why’d you run off alone?” Asked Lars.

“...I-I messed up last time...” admitted Sodalite as she held her hands anxiously over her chest. “I-I didn’t react fast enough and-and it caused so much trouble. So I...I thought if I...didn’t hesitate this time...I could...maybe...”

“Why did you come to the arcade,” Steven asked, trying to make sense of this.

“I-isn’t this where you play games...?”

Lars and Steven glanced at one another, both coming to the same conclusion. It’s not that Spinel was actually here, Sodalite just jumped to conclusions.

Steven didn’t want to get his hopes up. It hurt so much having to remind himself that Spinel wasn’t coming back. “...it’s okay, Sodalite. ...I’m sure you just got confused...”

“N-no! I-My Steven, I know what I heard. I-I was connected to Spinel for a time wh-when I was broken. Remember? Her-her fear...was very strong. I can still...I still feel it. I know what it feels like. She’s here. ...I think-I think...she’s trying to reach us...by p-playing a game...”

Lars gasped lightly, recalling how it felt when that thing took over his body. That creature had merged with Spinels personality, so no wonder it treated this whole scenario like a game. Even when he was attacking the others, it regarded the situation like a game of tag.

“...hide and seek...” Steven mumbled to himself. Was it possible? “...b-but she’s...”

“Are we sure?” Asked Lars pointedly. “...I mean...you and Connie saw the shards and assumed...but how do we know those shards really belong to Spinel? Doesn’t that thing know everything Spinel knows?”

As much as Steven didn’t want to get his hopes up only to have them dashed, he would rather bet everything he had on the notion that Spinel was still out there. He’d been so focused on getting revenge that he never considered the shattering was staged. Just like Pearl and Spinel had done for Pink in the past. He could have been holding onto someone else’s shards, or even fake ones. “I...I want her back...” Steven choked out as tears filled his eyes. This hurt so much. Too much. If there was any small chance that Spinel was out there, he wanted to believe it. Even if it meant that he’d fall further into despair if it turned out to be a lie.

Lars pat Stevens back a bit and offered a sympathetic smile, “then let’s play the stupid game.”

“I-I’m not good at games...but I-I’ll do my best.” Insisted Sodalite, trying to appear brave despite her trembling shoulders. “As long as Lars is with me...” she added.

Steven smiled a bit, touched by his friends willingness to go along with this small shred of hope. They had no proof that these shards around his neck weren’t Spinels, but just for now, he wanted to hope they weren’t. “Thanks you guys. ...but let’s keep this to ourselves for now. ...okay?” The last thing he needed was for the Gems to try and convince him that he was deluding himself. Especially since they didn’t put much faith in Sodalite due to her history of overreactions and panic.

“Does that mean we’re gonna be the only ones playing? I think we should at least give my crew a chance to volunteer some help.” Suggested Lars, sure that the Off Colors could provide sufficient back up in case something went wrong.

Though a bit apprehensive, Steven nodded his head, “okay, but if that thing is still inside of Spinel...it will be really dangerous. ...I don’t want anyone else getting hurt or...or worse. ...so the fewer players...the better.”

“We should meet up after dark,” Lars thought aloud, “if she’s playing hide and seek, she won’t be out in the open during the day.”

Steven was reminded of the games he played with Spinel when he was younger. Hide and Seek was one of her favorites and after he learned to use the warp, the game became more elaborate. However, there was one game he recalled right away.

Spinel had warped away in order to hide, but unfortunately, an earthquake had occurred while she was hiding and cracked the wrap pad, rendering it useless. It took the Gems more than a week to find her and Steven was beside himself the entire time. He felt like it was his fault for not being able to find her. As if he should have known better. After that, he and Spinel didn’t the play the game much anymore. He was scared of losing her for so long again.

“...Spinel...promised I wouldn’t lose her. She said we didn’t have to play that game anymore so that...we’d never be separated for that long again...” mumbled Steven.

Lars stared at Steven curiously, unsure what he was getting at.

“If she’s playing this game again...I think...she’s doing it so I know where to look. At least...I hope so.” Steven added, still worried that he was just making connections where there were none because he wanted it to be true. “Let’s go back to the house. ...we’re gonna need to take the warp.”


	22. A New Plan

Returning to the beach house, Steven was relieved to see that the Diamonds had gone. He was still seething after they had offered him another Spinel as some cheap replacement.

"Shouldn't we contact someone else before we leave?" Suggested Lars. "If we run into trouble and no one knows where we are, it could be a problem."

Though Steven didn't want too many people involved in this, Lars had a point. Normally, he would have put his trust in Connie, but her appearance caused such problems before. If Spinel was truly still out there, that creature was still inside of her and it didn't like Connie at all. He didn't want anything to set it off right away.

Once they got into the house, Steven asked to borrow Lars' phone and sent out a text to the next person he thought they could trust for this. Pearl. He'd been reminded once before, that he wasn't the only one that cared about Spinel. Pearl loved her like a sister and he thought if anyone could understand his insistence on searching for her, it would be Pearl.

He didn't bother looking for the other Gems before rushing to the warp pad now. Sodalite held tight to Lars' hand as she prepared to be transported. Though she was scared, Sodalite was determined not to be a hindrance this time. It was her fault that Spinel got away before, she couldn't let that happen again.

The light of the warp pad engulfed them all and when it faded, the three had been teleported to a large, snow covered valley. An unfinished tower stood in the middle, crumbling slightly due to weathered decay.

"My Steven, won't you be cold?" Asked Sodalite in concern. Though she'd only read about snow in some books Steven gave her, she knew it was generally cold for humans.

"It's fine, it's fine," insisted Steven as he stepped off the warp, clearly focused on the damaged tower off in the distance. "That's it. That's where Spinel liked to hide before..." he informed the others while pointing to the structure. "You two wait out here. If she is in there...she might freak out if she sees Sodalite."

"You can't just go in there alone," added Lars. "That thing was inside my head, remember? From what I felt back then, it's pretty psychotic if you ask me."

"Just...give me ten minutes inside to look around. We don't know for sure that she's in there...but if she is, Sodalite will just make her aggressive. Wait for ten minutes and then come in after me as quietly as possible."

Lars was reluctant to agree. He would have insisted on going with Steven, but he couldn't leave Sodalite out here alone. If she heard a loud noise and ran off, they would have to look for her too. He nodded eventually and watched as Steven stepped through the shallow snow to reach the tower's entrance.

Truthfully, the cold of the snow stung his feet, but there were bigger things to worry about. If he wasn't so desperate, he might have stopped to prepare for this a little more.

Once he stepped into the tower, Steven glanced around the empty room, snow had settled on the stone floor, worrying Steven a bit when he saw how undisturbed it was. Trying to keep his hopes up, he carefully walked up the spiraling stairs towards the second floor. He tried to convince himself that even if Spinel wasn't here, it didn't mean she wasn't hiding somewhere else. He just wanted to believe he could see her again. The real Spinel. Not some illusion he would create in his mother's room. When Steven finally reached the second floor, he hesitated to round the corner. If he walked in there and saw nothing, where else would Spinel be? He held his breath and just as he was about to walk inside, the phone in his pocket began to vibrate. The sudden sound nearly startled him to slip up, but it also forced him to stumble into the room.

He quickly fumbled for the phone, trying to turn it off, but dropped the device in the snow instead. The phone continued to ring as Steven stared at the towers unfinished second floor. Spinel wasn't here. He had a small sliver of hope that she would be here waiting for him, but there was nothing. He dropped to his knees, sitting in the snow, staring down at the phone that wouldn't stop ringing.

It was Pearl. Probably panicking after she got Stevens message. After all, they insisted he stay close, but he couldn't let this chance slip by. He wanted to see Spinel once more, even if it meant getting caught by that thing that was inside of her.

"Steven!" Called out Lars as he and Sodalite scrambled to the second floor to check on him.

"...she's not here," mumbled Steven quietly.

Lars looked around at the undisturbed snow and sighed, "...well...that doesn't mean anything. She might still-"

Sodalite had tried to go around Lars to reach Steven, but slipped and fell, face planting into the snow.

"Aw geez," Lars began, leaning down to help Sodalite up. "You okay?"

Sodalite nodded her head, brushing the snow from her hair as she got back to her feet. "Yes, I tripped over this thing..." answered Sodalite as she bent down to pluck the object from the snow. To her horror, it was a large shard of a pink Gem. With a gasp, Sodalite dropped the shard at once. Steven and Lars turned their attention to the Gem immediately.

"It's...a Rose Quartz..." muttered Steven as he reached for the Gem to inspect it further. "...or...a piece of one..."

Sodalite cowered away from the broken piece and hid behind Lars, "So-someone shattered her...?"

Lars stepped further into the room, kneeling down to start digging into the snow that covered the floor. it took a moment, but he eventually uncovered a few other shards. Unfortunately, not all of them looked as if they belonged together. Which meant they were from different Gems. All Rose Quartzes.

With Steven and Lars both digging and shifting the snow, they were able to recover what appeared to be at least four Rose Quarts Gems that had been broken into pieces.  
What did this mean? Was this proof that Spinel had been here? Did that thing destroy these Gems? For what? It was after him wasn't it? What purpose did it serve to go after Rose Quartzes?  
"We need to get back," stated Steven, gathering up the broken pieces into his shirt. "The others need to see this...and we need to confirm where the other Rose QWuartzes are."

Lars agreed, taking Sodalite's hand to keep her from tripping once again. She looked a bit queasy, but that was to be expected. Surely it wasn't easy to see shattered Gems like this. Once they reached the Warp pad and returned to the Beach House, they were met immediately by Pearl and Amethyst.

"Steven," Pearl sighed in relief as she placed down her phone. "Thank goodness! You're not supposed to leave the city right now, you know that!"

Though the Crystal Gems were happy to see him, their mood changed when they saw the shattered Gems that were cradled in his shirt. It was then that Steven explained why he had left and what they found there. Neither Amethyst nor Pearl could think of a reason that Rose Quartzes were being targeted, but Pearl seemed conflicted with the news that Spinel might still be out there. She wanted to believe it of course, but it was just as possible that this thing had taken over another Gem to do this.

"...either way, we're changing plans," insisted Steven now. "Clearly, me staying here is doing nothing. From now on, I'm using myself as bait. If this thing wants to play games, I'll play along."

"Steven..." began Amethyst, "...what if-"

"-Sodalite will be with me. It will be fine. From now on, where I go, she goes."

Sodalite flinched, "...y-yes, My Stev-"

"-hold up," interrupted Lars. "I get that Sodalite can help, but if that thing knows that Sodalite can hurt it, why would it go near you if Sodalite is with you? If anything, Sodalite should stay away from you to lure it out."

"But then how would we get her to him in time?" Pearl asked. "He wouldn't be safe without Sodalite close by."

"Well...how about we force its hand," suggested Amethyst. "...I mean, it's obsessed with Steven. So much so, that it took over Spinel so that Steven would love it, right? ...What if Steven loves someone else? If it's watching him or waiting somewhere...what if it sees Steven moving on and being happy with someone else? I mean, jealousy makes people do stupid things and Spinel was a pretty possessive Gem to begin with. It might be the fastest way to get her close to enough to Sodalite..."

"I'm not sure I like where you're going with this..." Lars began, glancing at Amethyst suspiciously.

"Just hear me out," insisted Amethyst. "There's no way that this thing is going to go near Sodalite now that it knows she can hurt it, but if it started to see Steven and Sodalite together...maybe it would get jealous enough to think that taking over Sodalite was the better option now? Did you say that she offered to become anyone you wanted, Steven? What if you made it look like you wanted Sodalite instead? Maybe that thing would willingly leave the body it has right now."

"Why does it have to be Sodalite?" Asked Lars in a huff. "Why can't some other Gem pretend to be his lover or something?"

Pearl smiled at Amethyst, impressed with the plan she had thought up.  
"No, I get it, it has to be Sodalite. Otherwise, there would be no reason for that creature to come anywhere near her. It would just hide in someone else as it's been doing and stay far away. I mean, we've had Sodalite stay here and even help search for it, but no luck. It would be better to lure it to Sodalite on its own. Besides, if it was anyone else, wouldn't the creature just try to eliminate them or take them over? At least if it tries to attack or take over Sodalite, she can retaliate and maybe even destroy the thing."

Steven was already resigned to use himself as bait and what they said made sense, but pretending to be in love with someone else? How would that even work? Most of his emotions had become dull since he thought he lost Spinel. Would he even be able to act at being happy?

Lars was going through all this in his head, trying to come up with some sort of solution that was better than theirs. It made sense to try it this way, but he had a pit in his stomach.  
"What...like what would they have to do?"

"Whatever Steven and Spinel would normally do?" shrugged Amethyst.

"Ha ha, no way," Lars refused as he grabbed Sodalite by the hand. "Sodalite is just barely tolerating other Gems. You want her to cozy up to Steven for, how long?"

"I need proof that Spinel is out there. ...we need to find that thing in order to see if it's still using her body, or if it really shattered her to occupy someone else," stated Steven evenly. He wasn't keen on this plan either, but it did sound like the best way to get that obsessive monster out in the open. "...contact Yellow Diamond and tell her to send soldiers to watch over any Rose Quartz Gems on Earth. ...I guess...in the meantime, we can try and lure the thing out using Sodalite."

"Whoa, whoa, you're really thinking about doing this? What about Sodalite? Doesn't she get a say in this?" asked Lars, slightly panicked that this plan was getting the green light. "I mean-I want to find that thing too but putting Sodalite in danger AND forcing her to act like Steven's **_girlfriend_** , come on, do you really just expect me to let you use her however you guys want?"

"We are not forcing her to do anything," replied Pearl, almost offended by the notion.

"She still sees Steven as her Diamond, you know she's not going to refuse anything he asks her to do. Now how is that fair to her?" asked Lars again.

Steven sighed, feeling rather boxed in by everything that was happening. If Spinel was out there, he wanted to find her as soon as possible. If that thing had really shattered her then he wanted to find it and destroy it just as quickly. If this was the fastest way to do it, he needed Sodalite to cooperate.  
"...Sodalite is staying here anyway," began Steven, "she'll just be staying a little closer to me."

Lars shook his head before finally turning to Sodalite. She had been rather silent through all this.  
"You don't have to do everything he asks, you know. You can refuse."

Sodalite was staring at the floor, just as she tended to do when forced to be around too many Gems. She didn't like to look directly at them and see the dark fog that surrounded them. However, she had been listening the whole time. Lars was right of course, she didn't want to spend time closer to Steven. He had a lot of dark fog swirling around him and it had only gotten worse since losing Spinel. If they went ahead with this plan, wouldn't that mean she wouldn't have any time alone to recoup after being around all these Gems? Also, what did acting like his lover mean? Was it the same as being with Lars? Did she have to treat Steven as she treated Lars?  
She didn't want to refuse Steven's request, but she didn't want to make Lars angry either and he seemed rather upset over this latest order. Would he hate her for doing this?

"I-I want to help. ...but...what-what do I have to do?" asked Sodalite quietly, keeping her eyes on the floor.

"...Well...for one...you won't be able to see Lars for a while..." replied Pearl.

"Wh-Why?!" gasped Sodalite, lifting her head to face Pearl now, though averting her gaze rather quickly.

"...That thing has all of Spinels memories. So it would know how attached you are to Lars. It won't believe that you've become attached to Steven if Lars hangs around or if you cling to Lars," Pearl explained. "I know it's asking a lot, but you're the only weapon we have against this thing and we need to make it come to you. ...It's already shattered Gems and hurt Lars. It's dangerous and unstable."

Sodalite glanced at Lars, troubled by the irritated look on his face. He clearly didn't want her to do this. It was understandable. Seeing Lars act friendly with another Gem or human girl would upset her too, but this was her chance to do something useful. Even before she broke, she had been deemed useless. After being fixed, she still felt broken. Perhaps by doing this, she could redeem herself just a little bit. Maybe if she was successful in doing this, she wouldn't feel like such a burden just for existing. "I-I'm sorry..." she began, gripping Lars' sleeve between her fingers, "...it-it won't be for too long..."

"Are you serious?" asked Lars before turning to Sodalite and placing his hands on her shoulders to lean down and meet her eyes. "You really don't have to do this stuff, you know? You're already living here and I barely see you as it is. Pretending to be a couple with Steven isn't like what goes on between you and me."

"...I-I just want to help. I'm-I helped this thing...it used me to get here. ...I-I couldn't do anything last time. ...I can-I can be useful...this way..."

Lars heaved a heavy sigh when he saw the look on Sodalite's face. This was important for her, wasn't it? Still, that didn't mean he was okay with it.  
"This is bullshit," grumbled Lars, turning away from Sodalite. Even if this was pretend, he had to not only stay away from Sodalite, but worry the entire time about her safety while Steven was cuddling up to her.

"P-please...don't be angry with me..." pleaded Sodalite, stepping forward to reach for Lars' hand.

Lars glanced back at her and deflated. He wanted to be angry, but he knew that if he yelled and made a fuss, Sodalite would just blame herself. "...I...not angry with you," he replied finally, reaching out to take her hand. "i know you just want to help."

"It's not as if Sodalite is going to actually be my lover," added Steven, trying to make Lars a but less anxious. He understood this was a but much. "I'm not going to kiss her or anything. She just...needs to be around me. I love Spinel. ...I don't want to even pretend to love someone else...but I'll do anything to see her again. I know that Sodalite is important to you, just like Spinel is to me. I'll be with her to keep her safe...and I'll try to keep her from being around too many Gems at once."

Lars ran his hand through his hair, clearly not okay with any of this, but it wasn't his call. Sodalite had already agreed and he didn't want to tell her what to do. She didn't often insist on doing anything, especially if he voiced his concern over it. They had barely become a couple, so of course he was going to be insecure about all this. "...I can't see her, but I'll want to know how she's doing...and I'm gonna make a list of ground rules," replied Lars.

Steven nodded his head. If the shoe was on the other foot, he would have trouble agreeing to something like this too. They weren't even positive that Spinel was still being used by that thing, but he didn't want to give up and despair again. All they had to do now was start their own game and hope that the monster would play along.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay on Chapter Updates everyone. Life was getting in the way and writing all this stuff on my phone is annoying to say the least. Lol


	23. Steven's Sedative

After leaving Steven a large list of instructions and rules on how to properly take care of Sodalite, as well as a list of things he was NOT allowed to do, Lars had left the beach house in a huff.

He knew this was pretend and it was Sodalite's choice to help, but Lars couldn't fend off this insecure feeling that was gnawing at him. It was made even worse since he was told to stay away. He understood why, but that didn't mean he was okay with it and his impatience with the situation did not go unnoticed by his crew or the people around him.

It had only been a few days since the Gems agreed on this new plan to lure out the creature and Amethyst was doing her part by making sure everyone knew that Steven had a new girlfriend. Since they weren't sure who might be listening, they kept the list of people who knew the truth short.

Though Lars wasn't allowed to see Sodalite, he made sure to keep tabs on them in his own way. Not that it made him feel any better.

"When is that stupid thing gonna come out?" Groaned Lars bitterly as he slumped over the front counter of his bakery.

"Just be patient, Captain..." urged the Left Rutile twin as she locked the shop's door for the night. "Sodalite will come home soon."

Lars sighed and removed his apron, slamming it down onto the counter with a frown. It wasn't like he didn't trust Steven to keep his hands to himself. Lars knew that Steven loved Spinel and didn't have any interest in Sodalite romantically. What worried him most, was what Sodalite would think.

This relationship was very new and Sodalite was so innocent and pure, that Lars didn't want to do anything that might tarnish her somehow. As a result, they hadn't even shared a kiss since the first one. He wasn't very good at sharing his feelings either and Sodalite was always the one to initiate any sort of affection. Whether it was holding hands, kissing his cheeks, or snuggling up to him. He didn't care for public displays of affection either, since Lars embarrassed easily. On the other hand, Lars knew how open and honest Steven was with his feelings and how publicly affectionate he was with Spinel. What if Sodalite preferred Steven even though they were just pretending? Sodalite was honest and open about her feelings all the time, so wouldn't she prefer someone who could show her the affection she wanted?

Honestly, sitting around thinking about it was driving him mad. "I'm going for a walk," grumbled Lars, grabbing his jacket and heading for the door. However, before Lars had even reached for his keys, a knock at the door nearly caused him to trip over his feet. In an irritated huff, Lars unlocked the door and intended to tell the stranger they were closing up, but when he saw who the visitor was, he paused.

"Connie? What are you doing here?" Asked Lars as he stared down at the obviously concerned young woman.

"Can we talk for a sec? It's important."

Though he would have much rather cleared his head, Lars was reluctant to say no when Connie looked troubled like this. Still, it was a little weird that she would come to him and not Steven. In fact, wasn't she supposed to be at school? "Sure, come on in," answered Lars finally as he opened the door further to let Connie inside.

While Lars welcomed his unexpected visitor, Steven was busy removing several splinters from his cheeks. Sodalite had gotten startled while they were out and since he was holding her hand when she ran away, he had been dragged away and accidentally slammed into a tree.

"I'm so sorry!" Sodalite apologized again, panicking as she was huddled in the corner of Steven's bed with the blankets draped over her to hide.

"I said I'm okay," insisted Steven once more. She had apologized nearly ten times already. It had been a couple of days and yet she still wasn't any less tense around him. At the very least, she had been purifying him non-stop so that she could be around him without being completely terrified. Since Sodalite was making sure his negative emotions left him the moment they began bubbling up again, Steven was in good spirits. Calm and well rested. It was nice not to have to feel that pain from missing Spinel. Not that it made him any less determined to find her. It just meant that he could sleep at night. Sodalite was basically his sedative for the time being.

"B-but your face..." whimpered Sodalite.

With a sigh, Steven reached over and pulled the blanket off of her, revealing the freckled Gem as she hugged her knees to her chest. "My face is fine. See? Now, sit down properly so I can fix your hair."

Sodalite silently nodded and did as she was told. She sat down on the floor while Steven placed himself behind her to unravel her braids. One of the instructions on Lars' list for Sodalite's routine was that he brushed her hair before bed. Steven was honestly surprised that Lars would do this, but it was cute to imagine Lars doting on someone like that. He made a note to tease him about it later.

"Do-do you think...it's working...?" Asked Sodalite as Steven brushed out her silver hair.

"...I don't know," he admitted quietly. "But it's only been a few days. ...if this plan doesn't work out...we'll go back to the original. We just...have to give it a little more time."

"A-and what about the-the other Gems? Did they-"

"-we haven't found them," answered Steven, starting to feel that pit in his stomach again. Several more Rose Quartz's had gone missing. They told the others to stay inside the Zoo for now, but he hated not being able to help and essentially locking them up.

Sodalite turned around and took Steven's hand, taking the dark feelings that began to fester and making them disappear. This wasn't just for Steven's sake, but for her too. She couldn't be around Steven with that dark cloud hovering over him like a monster.

"...thanks," breathed Steven with a small smile. He liked the calm, sort of numb feeling that came with her power. He knew this power of hers was a bandaid solution, but it was far better than feeling like his world was falling apart. Without Spinel, everything seemed so dark. At least when Sodalite calmed him down, it didn't hurt.

"My Steven...why don't you rest? Y-you must be tired..."

Steven nodded his head and laid himself down on the bed, staring up at the ceiling and wondering just how long he'd have to wait until he'd see Spinel's face again.

Sodalite was still a bit uncomfortable laying beside Steven, but she knew that without her, he would have trouble sleeping. Truthfully, she hadn't slept since staying at the beach house. Instead, she spent the night purifying Steven so that he could rest comfortably. She sat beside Steven and reached for his hand until she noticed his eyes begin to water.

"...why can't I hear her?" Asked Steven quietly, still staring up at the ceiling even as his eyes welled up with tears.

Sodalite flinched, feeling a rush of sadness wash over her. "My Steven...I-"

"-I connected with Lapis when she was in trouble and far away. ...I connected with the Cluster. ...but if Spinel is out there...why can't I sense her? Why can't I see her? You heard her...but I can't. ...Why?"

Sodalite wasn't sure what to say, but she could feel a terrible pain in her chest as tears rolled down her cheeks. This hurt too much. "I'm sorry..." she whimpered, bringing his hand up to hold it between her own. "I-I will help get her back. She-she'll be back soon..."

Tears slipped down the side of Steven's face. Sure, it was nice to be calm and let Sodalite numb him, but sometimes he needed to cry. He did feel bad that Sodalite had to feel this pain too, but at least he wasn't alone. He pulled his hand away and turned over, wrapping his arms around Sodalite's waist, resting his head in her lap as he held her. "S-sorry..." Steven choked out. He knew how unfair he was being to this Gem. She was being forced to feel all this pain. He was keeping her from the one she loved. She was doing so many things that scared her and constantly purifying him. Now he expected her to comfort him? How much more would he selfishly ask of her?

"...it-its okay..." Sodalite answered as she wiped her tears. "I-I'm here. ...j-just rest, My Steven."

Steven smiled pitifully, feeling a warm calm settle inside his chest. He closed his eyes, letting the last of his tears trickle down his cheek as he drifted off to sleep.

Sodalite simply sat there, leaning back against the pillows at the head of the bed, Steven still holding gently to her waist. She'd never felt pain like this before Steven lost Spinel. She could feel it all around this house. The pain of loss, it hurt more than she could imagine. "I-I will fix it..." whispered Sodalite, glancing down at Steven's sleeping face, a few of his tears having dropped against her lap. "I-I'm not going to give up. I can...I can help you...this time. I promise..."

It felt as though he had just closed his eyes when he began to hear the muffled sounds of someone talking downstairs. Whoever it was, they sounded in a rush. Since he was still half asleep, he wasn't trying too hard to make out what they were saying. Even as footsteps were rushing up the stairs, he didn't stir too much. He was actually pretty comfortable, preferring to sleep in a little more rather than wake up to feel that pain again. He was about to close his eyes again before the door to his room swung open with a start.

Steven groaned sleepily, not bothering to open his eyes since he assumed it was Pearl there to wake him. "...later..." he mumbled.

"Well, don't you look comfortable," muttered Lars, causing Steven's heart to drop into his stomach, waking him completely now. His eyes shot open and he froze in place, staring up at a clearly outraged Lars. However, the pink human had a forced smile on his face, which only unsettled Steven more.

He realized now, that the soft warmth he felt against his cheek was Sodalite's thigh and he immediately recalled falling asleep in her lap. In fact, he still had his arms wrapped around her waist as if he were hugging a pillow. Steven sat up at once, his back stiff as he panicked internally. Making things worse, Sodalite was still sleeping soundly as if she hadn't heard a single thing.

"M-morning Lars," began Steven, avoiding eye contact with his friend and offering a nervous smile. "I-I can explain this. It's not-"

Lars was now glaring down at Steven as Sodalite finally began to stir in her sleep. Both young men turned their gaze to the sleepy Gem who was still blissfully unaware of what was happening. "Mm...My Steven...?" yawned Sodalite, a little surprised that she had fallen asleep.

"We-we have a guest," Steven announced. He was still nervous since Lars appeared eager to attack him, but he also knew that Lars was forcing a smile because he wasn't about to yell and scare Sodalite.

The freckled Gem rubbed her eyes to wake herself up a little more and once her gaze settled on the pink human, a bright smile laced her face. "Lars," she exclaimed happily, leaping up from the bed and tackling Lars to the floor before he could greet her.

"Oomph-! G-good morning," Lars breathed, stuck on his back as Sodalite hugged his shoulders, rubbing her cheek against his own. He wanted to remain angry, but she was making it difficult. "What was Steven doing in yo-" Even as he tried to question Sodalite on the position he had caught Steven in, she had begun to happily plant kisses along his cheek, quickly silencing him.

"I'd give you some privacy, but you know, it's my room," chided Steven, a little annoyed over seeing such a display while he was missing his Spinel.

"D-don't make jokes," insisted Lars, sitting up and placing his hands on Sodalite's shoulders to stop her. "I clearly wrote in the instructions, NO intimate touching of any kind."

Sodalite wasn't even sure what they were talking about. Lars seemed a little upset, but she was mostly just disappointed that he had stopped her. It had been days since she saw him.

"Okay, while I understand why you might get the wrong idea..." started Steven calmly, "...that wasn't anything at all. I just fell asleep."

"With your arms around her?!"

Sodalite frowned. Why was Lars angry? "Ar-aren't you happy to see me...?"

Lars flinched, able to feel Sodalite's shoulders tremble against his palms. Was she about to cry? "Wha-of course I am," he tried, forcing a calmer smile for her sake.

Sodalite smiled once again, always easily swayed by his words. "I'm happy too," she replied cheerfully.

Lars felt his cheeks begin to burn. He hadn't seen Sodalite's innocent smile for days. It nearly diffused his anger altogether. He lowered his head, hoping to hide his bashful expression, "H-hey, can you give me and Steven a minute alone?"

The freckled Gem seemed troubled now. Her orders were to stay with Steven. She glanced his way and when Steven nodded, Sodalite got to her feet. "...o-okay."

The boys were silent until Sodalite left the room, waiting for the door to close before speaking again.

"...so, what brings you here?" Asked Steven, breaking the awkward silence that hung in the air.

"Well, I did come to tell you something important, but I didn't think I'd find you using my girlfriend as your personal pillow," answered Lars in a huff as he got to his feet.

Steven shrunk a bit. Though there was nothing romantic about it, he understood why Lars would be upset. "...She calms me down..." replied Steven quietly. Not sure how else to explain it. Honestly, after being calmed for so long and so often, he felt a little anxious with Sodalite being out of the room. The longer she was away from him, the more time his pain would have to resurface. How long did he have before it came back in full force?

Lars wanted to throw a fit, but instead, he took a deep breath and tried to remember what Steven was going through. He didn't like watching Sodalite treat Steven as her Diamond and he all his insecurities hadn't disappeared, he just didn't see the point in taking it out on Steven. It would be like kicking a man when he was down. "...I would have just called, but my phone took a dive last night," he started to explain. "Last night, Connie came by the shop."

"Connie? She went back to school...why-"

"-she said she took a leave of absence, but that's not the point. She was acting really weird. For one, I didn't see Lion anywhere and when I asked about him, she said she hadn't seen him in a while. She didn't even seem concerned about it. What she **did** seem concerned about, was asking questions regarding you and Sodalite. Not only that, but she seemed to lose her temper rather quickly. She also seemed upset when I asked if she was okay and it looked like her head was hurting her. She insisted on going home alone...but I sent the Rutiles to follow her...and...they didn't come back."

"What?!" Steven exclaimed, standing from the bed now. "Well, why aren't you-"

"-we already went looking for them," insisted Lars. "...what we found, was their Gem. They'd been poofed. They haven't reformed yet."

"...and you think Connie poofed them?"

"Who else? I mean, I didn't see anything strange in her eyes...but she wasn't herself. Something was definitely wrong. I would have told you sooner, but my phone busted when we were looking for the Twins and...I wanted to make sure they were safe before anything else."

Steven began to panic. He thought Connie would be safe since she had gone back to school. Did the creature take her without anyone realizing it? When? Why? Didn't it want Spinel because he loved her? Or had it taken Connie because Spinel was truly gone? What was it planning to do with Connie? Was it forcing Connie to shatter those Rose Quartz's and if so, why?  
"S-Sodalite!" Steven called out, feeling the pain in his chest start to ache. It was like he couldn't take a proper breath it hurt so bad.

The panicked Gem ran into the room, most likely waiting outside for them to call her back inside. She rushed over to Steven and quickly took his hand. it didn't take long for Steven to calm down, but he gripped Sodalite's hand to keep her there. Something that didn't go unnoticed by Lars.

"Steven...how often has Sodalite been purifying you?" Lars asked in genuine concern. Even if the news was upsetting, that was a rather strong reaction to it.

"...it doesn't matter. It's just easier to deal with things when she does this," answered Steven.

Lars was still a bit wary. Maybe the constant healing wasn't a good thing. "...maybe you should take a break with it. I mean, it might not be super healthy for you being half human and all." Like any human taking a drug to numb themselves, too much was never a good thing. Not to mention how you might feel when it wears off. Her power probably affected Steven differently.

"I know you want Sodalite back, but I need her right now," insisted Steven, more focused on the situation with Connie than Lars' concerns about Sodalite. "We need to find Connie now so that I can talk to her...and figure out where Lion went."

"Right..." sighed Lars. "...Well...I gave you the information, I should get going."

Sodalite nearly stepped away from Steven when Lars turned for the door, but Steven tightened his grip on her hand.  
He knew that this was hard for her, but just by coming here Lars could have ruined things. If that thing was inside of Connie or anyone else, it could be watching the house. They had a few more options now, but he still hoped to lure it out.

"We need to go and talk to Pearl. I think I have an idea," stated Steven.

"...yes, My Steven..." Sodalite replied quietly, staring at the door that Lars had gone through.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Poor Steven. His problems just keep piling up, but don't worry, perhaps in the next chapter, he will receive a sliver of happiness.   
> You know...maybe. >.>


	24. Garnets Secrets and Stevens Dream

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry for the small Hiatus. I have nerve damage in my hands and recently the pain was just a little too much for me.   
> Though I feel much better now, it kept me from writing or drawing. 
> 
> Thank you all for sticking with me and my stories. I'm trying to make sure I catch up on all of them soon. :)

After hearing the news of Connie and the Off Colors, Garnet excused herself to rethink a few things. Inside her Temple room, Garnet was pacing the floor. For a while now, she'd been silently watching as her little family fell apart and it was difficult to remain together through it all. When Steven and Connie returned to the beach house with Spinels shattered Gem, Garnet was not surprised. Nor was she surprised when Steven insisted that Sodalite stay with them. However, the news of Connie being taken was news to her. Finally. It was what she had been waiting for.

Though Garnet felt bad about it, she was secretly elated over something she didn't see coming. There was a reason for this. Despite telling the others that she couldn't see anything regarding the creature, she had lied. In fact, Garnet could see many paths that involved this creature, but they all ended in tragedy. Tragedy that she wasn't willing to accept. She refused to tell the others what she saw in fear that they would dive headfirst into danger. Steven and Pearl especially. the others would surely hate her once they knew she was hiding information from them, but Garnet was waiting for something, anything that might change their fates. This was it. Connie had never been involved like this in the futures she saw. The problem now was figuring out how to proceed. She could see a few options, but she couldn't see very far. Eventually, the paths all went dark. This was also something new. So far, it had all been clear, but now things were uncertain. Was this a good sign? Did it mean that they really could change the futures she saw? All of which ended with more dead than she would have liked.

So far, Garnet had been trying to keep Steven within Beach City. She did her best to curb Pearls need to lead the searches, insisting that she needed to be there for Steven now. It wasn't fun to manipulate her friends like this. It wasn't fun going on searches and intentionally taking them places she knew they wouldn't find anything. However, Garnet felt she had no choice. She had to protect them the only way she could.

When Steven brought in Sodalite, Garnet knew it was not going to end well. Sodalite was using her power so much that it nearly drained her and Steven was so dependent on Sodalite now that he never let her leave his side. This was also something she had seen. It wasn't the most ideal path to take, but it was one that would keep Steven calm and inside of Beach City. The long-term effects of Sodalites help would be something they could deal with later. It wasn't going to be pretty, but it was the far better option.

What Garnet had to concern herself with now was how to proceed with everything taking Connie and the Off Colors into account. Since she couldn't see too far down the new paths that had been laid out for them, everything she planned would literally be a shot in the dark. All she could hope for was that these new paths meant the old ones had changed with these new variables in the mix. Without Steven knowing, Garnet had taken his phone, hoping to intercept any calls or texts he might receive from Connie while she was under the creature's control. As long as Sodalite was there to sedate him, he wouldn't noticing. So far, there was no indication that she intended to contact him at all.

After taking a moment to meditate on the problem, Garnet left the temple to make sure that things were still going as planned. She needed to set them on a certain path, one that may have been uncertain, but it was better than the alternative. The first step in keeping them on the path she chose, was to find Pearl and get her phone. She also had to make sure and send Amethyst away on some wild goose chase. There was also the problem of Steven and Sodalite. Especially Sodalite.

It didn't take much effort to find Pearl since she was anxiously pacing the floor of the observatory waiting on news. Though the slender Gem seemed a bit hesitant, she trusted Garnet enough to hand over her phone. No problems there. It was also an easy task to send Amethyst off. The only issue now was to keep any news from reaching Steven's ears. With this in mind, she made her way to Steven's bedroom, conflicted to see Steven looking rather sedated as he laid against his bed, staring up at the ceiling while Sodalite knelt at the side of the bed holding his hand.  
Garnet really didn't like just letting this happen, but what else could she do? This was the only way to keep Steven safe.

"How is he?" Garnet asked as she gently knocked at the door, hoping that she wasn't about to startle the Gem.

Luckily for Garnet, Sodalite seemed too tired to react as she normally would. She had been purifying Steven non-stop for days since the news about Connie and she was nearly at her limit.  
"...he...he's been...very upset..." replied Sodalite weakly.

The Gems tired voice was also a small source of guilt for the fusion. She was using this gem to serve her needs. What's more, she was here today to make sure that Sodalite didn't hear the news about Lars today.  
"...thank you for all you've been doing."

Sodalite smiled a bit, waiting for Steven to finally close his eyes before she released his hand and turned to Garnet. Though she wasn't able to look the fusion in the eyes, she appeared rather nervous as she spoke to the floor, wringing her hands in her lap.  
"A-actually...I-I...was wondering...if it was possible...for-for me to go and-and see L-Lars...? J-just while...um-just while My Steven is...is sleeping?"

This was what Garnet had come here for.  
"No," she replied at once.

The freckled Gem immediately deflated.  
"O-oh. ...but...I-"

"You are not to leave Stevens side," ordered Garnet adamantly. She felt bad for being so harsh with the nervous Gem. Sodalite had surely earned a break to see someone she loved, but if she went into the city today and saw what happened at the bakery, they would be flung down a path that wasn't good for any of them.

"...I understand..." answered Sodalite sadly.

Garnet glanced towards Steven, who seemed to be having a bad dream, stirring in his sleep with tears running down his cheeks. He was reaching out as if trying to reach someone and though she couldn't see his dreams, Garnet had a fair idea of what this nightmare was about. Spinel had been by his side all his life and once he realized his romantic feelings for her, Garnet knew they would have a hard time of it. Both Steven and Spinel had so much to work through, but she could never have seen this monster coming and tearing them apart like this. What made this all so much worse, was that Garnet knew Steven didn't have to suffer quite this much if she only told him what she'd been keeping to herself all this time. Spinel was alive. She knew this since the moment she was presented with the Shattered Gem Steven and Connie believed to be her old friend. Unfortunately, Garnet had to keep this to herself. What the others perceived as mourning, was Garnets anger and sadness over knowing that this creature had taken her friend and devastated the others with her cruel trick. What's more, Garnet knew exactly where this creature was hiding out, but if she told the others, it would be the end. More specifically, the end of Steven, Sodalite, Pearl, and Connie. She couldn't, she **_wouldn't_ **let that happen.  
"...just...take care of Steven," Garnet added, pulling out Steven's phone to check it since it was buzzing relentlessly. The mayor, Lars' parents, Sadie, and the police department were apparently trying hard to reach him and Garnet knew exactly why.  
"I have to go. Stay with Steven and don't use any communications."

Sodalite nodded her head and turned her attention back to Steven. Though she didn't have the energy to fully make the nightmares vanish, she took his hand and did her best to help. If only she could do more.

While Sodalite did what she could, Steven was lost in his nightmare. He found himself stuck in a neglected garden, much like the one in the temple, but far more spacious. The flowers had all but withered away and the stone structures were falling apart. He wasn't sure why he was here, but he didn't like it. The garden felt empty and there was this terrible anxious pit in his stomach. As he looked around the pitiful garden, he could hear someone laughing. A laugh he had heard all his life.

"Spinel?!" Steven called out. "Spinel, are you here?!"

"Did you come here to play with me?" Spinel's voice rang out.

"What? I-No! I came to find you!"

"Are you sure?" Spinel asked, suddenly appearing behind Steven as she stepped out of the dark.

Steven whipped around at once, shocked to see Spinel standing in front of him now. She looked nearly the same as the last time he saw her, but her hair seemed a bit disheveled as if she had been tugging at her pigtails, and her eyes were wild and desperate.  
Though Steven knew this was a dream, he couldn't help hoping that perhaps he and Spinel had finally connected in some way. It would mean she was truly still out there. Without hesitation, he lunged forward and wrapped his arms around her slender frame, holding her tight as his shoulders trembled.

"I-I've missed you so much!" Steven choked out, not bothering to stifle his tears. "I've been trying to find you! Please-Please tell me where to find you! I'll help you, I'll bring you back home!"

Spinel said nothing at first, nor did she react to Steven's embrace.  
"You replaced me..." replied Spinel finally, her voice flat and tired.

"No," insisted Steven. "I wouldn't. Not really," he pulled back to see her face but kept his hands on her shoulders. "I thought it might lure out-"

"-you replaced me too." Interrupted Connie as she stepped into the garden.

Steven gasped lightly, glancing at Connie over Spinel's shoulder. Connie looked rather banged up. Her clothes were torn and her hair was a mess as if she'd been in a fight.  
Admittedly, her words stung, but they weren't entirely true.  
"N-no," Insisted Steven as he shook his head, "I didn't replace you. I...I just..."

"You just threw me away the second you found someone else," snapped Connie. "I loved you...and you said you loved me too. Everything we went through together...it meant nothing to you."

"That's not true!"

"Then why," demanded Connie, "why was it so easy for you to toss me aside? So easy for you to be happy with Spinel as if I never existed?"

The pit in Steven's stomach was growing larger and it hurt. Is this really how Connie felt? Did he truly hurt her so much?  
"It-It wasn't like that. I just...I realized..."

"You used me to feel more human..." Connie finished for him. "You just thought you needed a human partner."

"NO!" Steven barked, feeling as if someone was trying to pull his heart from his chest. "You're my friend! My best friend! Just because my feelings changed, doesn't mean I regret being with you! I just...I never realized how I felt about Spinel because-because she was always with me..."

Connie frowned, glancing down at the ground before she hugged her own shoulders.  
"I-I know that."

Steven wasn't sure what was happening now. Was this a nightmare? Was it really Connie and Spinel trying to reach him? Either way, he was feeling worse the longer he was here. The pain was getting worse and now it was harder to breath, as if someone was pressing down on his chest. He turned his attention back to Spinel, who seemed almost lifeless as she stood there.  
"Spinel..." breathed Steven weakly, struggling to keep his grip on her shoulders. "...please just tell me...what to...find you..."

"She can't!" Connie shouted, dropping to her knees. Blood began to leak from her nose and mouth, clearly having trouble breathing as well. "St-Steven...if you don't hurry..."

"So tell me! What do I do?! Where can I go to help you two?!"

Connie took in some deep haggard breaths, trying hard to keep her focus as she spoke.  
"T-take Sodalite. ...Lars...Garnet can...she knows..."

As Connie struggled with her words, Steven could everything begin to fade around him. He could no longer keep hold of Spinel as her image began to vanish.  
"W-wait! Not yet! I still need-"

"You have to hurry," screamed Connie as everything turned dark. "You have to-"

Without warning, everything was gone and Steven woke up with a gasp. Covered in a cold sweat, he had sat up in a panic, his arm reaching out as if he was trying to keep the dream from leaving. He panted for breath and gripped his chest, feeling his heart pound rapidly.

"M-My Steven...?" Sodalite began cautiously, afraid to touch him after his sudden spring from sleep. He looked terrible.

"...I'm fine..." mumbled Steven before he turned to look at the freckled Gem. The dream was strange, but it felt real enough. Connie was trying to tell him something at the end. Something important. She said that Spinel couldn't tell him and Connie looked as if she were struggling to tell him anything at all. She'd mentioned Lars and Garnet. So that's where he would start. "...wanna go and visit Lars today?" Steven asked Sodalite, already knowing the answer he would receive. Of course, Sodalite nodded vigorously and helped Steven out of bed. He felt a lot like he had in the past when his Gem was separated from him, but he wasn't about to let that stop him. Connie told him to hurry, so that's just what he'd do. 


End file.
